Marino Stram & Associates LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Marino Stram & Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,566 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 193 shares during the quarter. Marino Stram & Associates LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,047,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FAST. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 20.7% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,000 after buying an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its stake in Fastenal by 74.0% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 21,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,382,000 after buying an additional 9,351 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 9,639 shares of the company’s stock worth $606,000 after buying an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in Fastenal by 4,008.2% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 756,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,522,000 after buying an additional 737,833 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its position in Fastenal by 60.7% during the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 109,651 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,890,000 after acquiring an additional 41,429 shares during the period. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson sold 8,474 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.36, for a total value of $706,392.64. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,199.20. This represents a 44.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Rita J. Heise sold 10,888 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.67, for a total value of $845,670.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,553,400. This represents a 35.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 74,660 shares of company stock worth $6,211,126 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FAST has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Hsbc Global Res cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

Fastenal Price Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $75.60 on Thursday. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $61.36 and a 12 month high of $84.88. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $77.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.26. The company has a current ratio of 4.67, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The firm has a market cap of $43.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.02.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1,842,560.16 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 77.61%.

Fastenal Profile

Fastenal Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, North America, and internationally. It offers fasteners, and related industrial and construction supplies under the Fastenal name. The company’s fastener products include threaded fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws, studs, and related washers that are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines.