TD Asset Management Inc. Trims Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

TD Asset Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,780,604 shares of the company’s stock after selling 231,631 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $199,953,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth about $68,000. Finally, Eastern Bank lifted its stake in shares of Fastenal by 440.7% in the fourth quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 984 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

FAST opened at $77.09 on Wednesday. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $61.36 and a 12-month high of $84.88. The company has a market cap of $44.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.35, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 4.67, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03. The company’s 50 day moving average is $75.23 and its 200 day moving average is $75.81.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly 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 analysts’ expectations of $1.84 billion. Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The company’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were given a $0.43 dividend. This is a boost from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 85.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on FAST shares. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Wolfe Research increased their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. HSBC lowered Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.