Texas Permanent School Fund Corp Raises Stock Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Texas Permanent School Fund Corp boosted its position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 0.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 118,296 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 307 shares during the period. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $9,125,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MCF Advisors LLC increased its stake in Fastenal by 2,172.2% in the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 46.9% in 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. purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in Fastenal by 283.2% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 755 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, Director Daniel L. Johnson purchased 3,350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $68.38 per share, for a total transaction of $229,073.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Daniel L. Johnson bought 3,350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $68.38 per share, with a total value of $229,073.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 10,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $724,486.10. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP James C. Jansen sold 11,428 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total transaction of $732,191.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,677,096.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Fastenal Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of FAST stock traded up $0.66 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $64.17. The stock had a trading volume of 4,009,956 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,709,859. Fastenal has a 52-week low of $53.83 and a 52-week high of $79.04. The company has a current ratio of 4.83, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $65.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.74 billion, a PE ratio of 31.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.01.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 11th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.68% and a return on equity of 33.98%. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on FAST. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Loop Capital lowered their price target 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 boosted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Fastenal from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Fastenal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $68.17.

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.