Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Stock Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,011,037 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 47,641 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.18% of Fastenal worth $72,481,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Fastenal during the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fastenal during the 4th quarter worth $49,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Fastenal in the fourth quarter worth about $49,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Fastenal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $68,000. Finally, Eastern Bank raised its position in shares of Fastenal by 440.7% during the 4th 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. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fastenal Price Performance

FAST stock traded up $1.38 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $77.55. The stock had a trading volume of 4,356,166 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,064,845. 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 52 week low of $61.36 and a 52 week high of $84.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $75.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.98.

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Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) 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). The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 32.55%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.46 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast 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 issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.22%. This is a boost from Fastenal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. Fastenal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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