Hartford Investment Management Co. Trims Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Hartford Investment Management Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 35,396 shares of the company’s stock after selling 518 shares during the quarter. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $2,545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in FAST. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 24.3% during the 4th quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 16,819 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,209,000 after buying an additional 3,292 shares during the last quarter. Certuity LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 23.7% during the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 10,251 shares of the company’s stock worth $737,000 after buying an additional 1,966 shares during the last quarter. Cardinal Strategic Wealth Guidance acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $295,000. Sovran Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $485,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $73,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of Fastenal stock opened at $73.68 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $75.09 and a 200-day moving average of $74.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.67 and a quick ratio of 2.28. The company has a market capitalization of $42.21 billion, a PE ratio of 36.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.02. Fastenal has a 1-year low of $61.36 and a 1-year high of $84.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.43 per share. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on FAST shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research upped their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. HSBC downgraded Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.