Postrock Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 169,291 Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Postrock Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 169,291 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,174,000. Fastenal comprises 5.9% of Postrock Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding.

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

Fastenal Trading Down 3.0 %

NASDAQ:FAST opened at $73.69 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $42.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $74.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $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.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 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 business had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.46 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. William Blair upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. HSBC lowered shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Hsbc Global Res lowered Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wolfe Research lifted their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.91.

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.