Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Boosts Stake in Fastenal Company $FAST

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in Fastenal Company (NASDAQ:FAST) by 104.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,971,285 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,515,896 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.26% of Fastenal worth $124,794,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 98.4% in the 2nd quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC now owns 20,449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $859,000 after purchasing an additional 10,144 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Fastenal by 129.7% in the second quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,420 shares of the company’s stock valued at $144,000 after buying an additional 1,931 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 99.2% during the 2nd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 528,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,192,000 after acquiring an additional 263,075 shares in the last quarter. Intelligent Financial Strategies grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Intelligent Financial Strategies now owns 2,522 shares of the company’s stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 1,261 shares during the period. Finally, Carnegie Investment Counsel increased its stake in Fastenal by 99.9% in the 2nd quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 9,879 shares of the company’s stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 4,936 shares in the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Fastenal

In other Fastenal news, EVP John Lewis Soderberg sold 34,612 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.03, for a total value of $1,662,414.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $42.45 per share, with a total value of $42,450.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 9,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $382,050. The trade was a 12.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 90,178 shares of company stock worth $4,336,603. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of FAST opened at $42.87 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $49.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.07, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.19 and a current ratio of 4.26. Fastenal Company has a 1 year low of $35.31 and a 1 year high of $50.63. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $47.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.25.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 13th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.30 by ($0.01). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.34% and a return on equity of 32.69%. The business had revenue of $2.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.13 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.26 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Fastenal Company will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 28th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 28th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is 82.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Wolfe Research reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Barclays set a $45.00 target price on shares of Fastenal and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $40.00 price target on shares of Fastenal and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Stephens raised their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.50.

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.