BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. Lowers Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. trimmed its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 18.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,142,678 shares of the company’s stock after selling 260,976 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. owned approximately 0.20% of Fastenal worth $88,146,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 15.2% in the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,928,209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $513,510,000 after acquiring an additional 1,043,529 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $405,513,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,800,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $310,931,000 after buying an additional 109,028 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 46.2% during the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 3,185,855 shares of the company’s stock worth $245,757,000 after buying an additional 1,006,402 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 497.3% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,099,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,083,000 after buying an additional 2,580,478 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $63.28 per share, with a total value of $31,640.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,480. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $63.28 per share, with a total value of $31,640.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $221,480. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP James C. Jansen sold 11,428 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,677,096.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Fastenal Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of FAST traded up $0.96 on Wednesday, hitting $69.99. 4,750,543 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,754,054. The company has a quick ratio of 2.49, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $65.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.59. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $53.83 and a 1 year high of $79.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.51. The business had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 25th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FAST has been the subject of several research reports. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $56.00 price target on shares of Fastenal in a research note on Monday. Loop Capital cut their price target on Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Fastenal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. HSBC lifted their price target on Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $66.67.

About Fastenal

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.