Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC Lowers Stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 13.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,925 shares of the company’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $138,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FAST. King Luther Capital Management Corp grew its holdings in Fastenal by 1.6% in the third quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 8,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $619,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $840,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its stake in Fastenal by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 7,008 shares of the company’s stock valued at $504,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Fastenal by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,038 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Fastenal by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 14,270 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,026,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST opened at $75.26 on Friday. Fastenal has a 1 year low of $61.36 and a 1 year high of $84.88. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $74.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.16 billion, a PE ratio of 37.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05. 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 (NASDAQ:FAST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. This is an increase from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FAST has been the topic of several research reports. Wolfe Research increased their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. HSBC cut 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. William Blair raised Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.91.

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.