Securian Asset Management Inc. Decreases Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Securian Asset Management Inc. lessened its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,789 shares of the company’s stock after selling 882 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $2,214,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Fastenal in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal during the third quarter valued at $27,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at $46,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $73.69 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 4.67. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $61.36 and a 52-week high of $84.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.26 billion, a PE ratio of 36.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.33%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 85.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. HSBC downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, William Blair raised Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.91.

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.