E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Has $369,000 Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. decreased its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 9.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,690 shares of the company’s stock after selling 592 shares during the quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $369,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in Fastenal by 46.9% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. bought a new position in Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Fastenal by 283.2% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 755 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lifted its stake in Fastenal by 77.7% in the fourth quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 1,084 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fastenal

In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 10,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $724,486.10. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Jeffery Michael Watts sold 19,420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.25, for a total transaction of $1,364,255.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,940 shares in the company, valued at approximately $417,285. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 10,595 shares in the company, valued at $724,486.10. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on FAST shares. Loop Capital cut their target price on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 15th. HSBC lifted their price target on Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Fastenal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.33.

Fastenal Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of FAST stock traded up $0.84 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $67.62. 2,646,907 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,949,781. The firm has a market cap of $38.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.07. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $52.86 and a fifty-two week high of $79.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 4.83. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $72.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $67.29.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a return on equity of 33.98% and a net margin of 15.68%. The firm had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. Fastenal’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Fastenal will post 2.12 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 24th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.23%.

Fastenal Company 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.