Cibc World Markets Corp Has $7.41 Million Stock Position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Cibc World Markets Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 14.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 103,083 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 12,861 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $7,413,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth $46,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal during the 4th quarter valued at about $68,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.38% of the company’s stock.

Fastenal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST opened at $76.09 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 2.28 and a current ratio of 4.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $74.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.63 billion, a PE ratio of 37.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05. Fastenal has a 52 week low of $61.36 and a 52 week high of $84.88.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released 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). Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The business had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.46 EPS. Fastenal’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. This is a positive change from Fastenal’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on FAST shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research lifted their price objective on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. William Blair upgraded shares of Fastenal from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res lowered Fastenal from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average 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.