SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. Makes New $931,000 Investment in Fastenal Company $FAST

SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. purchased a new position in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 22,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $931,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new stake in Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth $496,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 2.4% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 6,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the second quarter valued at $158,000. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the second quarter valued at $2,199,000. Finally, Cary Street Partners Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 111.0% during the second quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 3,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,000 after purchasing an additional 1,771 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fastenal news, Director Reyne K. Wisecup sold 36,920 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.34, for a total transaction of $1,747,792.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,893,600. This trade represents a 48.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FAST has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wolfe Research lowered their price target on Fastenal from $46.00 to $45.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Fastenal from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Bank of America raised their target price on Fastenal from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Fastenal from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fastenal has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.77.

Fastenal Trading Down 1.3%

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $44.20 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.34, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. Fastenal Company has a 1-year low of $38.97 and a 1-year high of $50.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.75. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $43.83.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 13th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30. Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.25% and a net margin of 15.39%.The business had revenue of $2.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Fastenal Company will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 28th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 28th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 84.21%.

Fastenal Profile

Fastenal (NASDAQ: FAST) is a wholesale distributor of industrial and construction supplies, best known for its broad assortment of fasteners such as bolts, nuts, screws and anchors. Founded in Winona, Minnesota, Fastenal has grown from a regional supplier into a national and international distributor serving a wide range of end markets, including manufacturing, construction, maintenance, repair and operations (MRO), and government customers. The company is publicly traded and operates through a network of locally staffed branches combined with national distribution capabilities.

Product offerings extend beyond fasteners to include tools, safety and personal protective equipment, power transmission components, cutting and welding supplies, janitorial and material handling items, and other industrial consumables.