Cibc World Markets Corp Grows Stock Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Cibc World Markets Corp increased its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 14.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 103,083 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,861 shares during the quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp's holdings in Fastenal were worth $7,413,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in Fastenal during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at about $49,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Fastenal during the fourth quarter valued at about $68,000. Institutional investors own 81.38% of the company's stock.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST stock traded down $0.78 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $74.73. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,781,375 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,923,942. The stock has a market cap of $42.85 billion, a PE ratio of 37.18, a P/E/G 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. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $61.36 and a fifty-two week high of $84.88. The company's 50 day moving average is $75.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.52.

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Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by ($0.02). Fastenal had a return on equity of 32.55% and a net margin of 15.25%. The company had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.46 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued 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 2.30%. This is an increase from Fastenal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 85.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on FAST shares. William Blair upgraded shares of Fastenal from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. HSBC cut Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "reduce" rating and set a $70.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $76.91.

Fastenal Company 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.