2Xideas AG Has $12.02 Million Stock Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

2Xideas AG lessened its stake in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 47.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 155,823 shares of the company’s stock after selling 138,048 shares during the quarter. Fastenal accounts for about 1.5% of 2Xideas AG’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. 2Xideas AG’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $12,020,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of FAST. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,928,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $513,510,000 after purchasing an additional 1,043,529 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $405,513,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Fastenal by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,800,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $310,931,000 after acquiring an additional 109,028 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Fastenal by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 3,248,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $250,617,000 after purchasing an additional 569,118 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Fastenal by 46.2% in the first quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 3,185,855 shares of the company’s stock worth $245,757,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006,402 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Fastenal from $74.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective (down previously from $85.00) on shares of Fastenal in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on Fastenal from $71.00 to $66.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Fastenal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Finally, HSBC lifted their price objective on Fastenal from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $66.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fastenal news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $63.28 per share, for a total transaction of $31,640.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $221,480. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Hsenghung Sam Hsu purchased 500 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was bought at an average price of $63.28 per share, for a total transaction of $31,640.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $221,480. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP James C. Jansen sold 11,428 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total transaction of $732,191.96. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,176 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,677,096.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.41% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fastenal Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of FAST stock traded up $0.10 on Tuesday, reaching $70.89. The company had a trading volume of 2,588,535 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,693,634. The stock has a market cap of $40.60 billion, a PE ratio of 35.27, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a 50-day moving average of $65.37 and a 200-day moving average of $69.02. The company has a current ratio of 4.39, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Fastenal has a 12 month low of $53.83 and a 12 month high of $79.04.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 12th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.91 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Fastenal will post 2.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Fastenal Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th will be given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 26th. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.61%.

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.