Board of the Pension Protection Fund Invests $748,000 in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new position in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 10,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $748,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. King Luther Capital Management Corp raised its stake in shares of Fastenal by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 8,664 shares of the company’s stock worth $619,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Fastenal by 1.9% in the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $545,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its holdings in Fastenal by 5.8% in the third quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $186,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the period. Compass Ion Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Compass Ion Advisors LLC now owns 9,927 shares of the company’s stock worth $709,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Fastenal by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $240,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FAST has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. HSBC cut Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus cut Fastenal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $86.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Fastenal in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fastenal has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $77.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Rita J. Heise sold 10,888 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.67, for a total transaction of $845,670.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,553,400. This represents a 35.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Charles S. Miller sold 23,480 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.92, for a total transaction of $1,970,441.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 74,660 shares of company stock valued at $6,211,126. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

Fastenal stock opened at $73.74 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $78.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.40 and a quick ratio of 2.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.69, a P/E/G ratio of 4.64 and a beta of 1.02. Fastenal has a 12-month low of $61.36 and a 12-month high of $84.88.

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.