Legato Capital Management LLC Has $1.44 Million Holdings in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

Legato Capital Management LLC trimmed its stake in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Free Report) by 37.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,021 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,796 shares during the quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC's holdings in Fastenal were worth $1,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FAST. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Fastenal by 54.1% in the 3rd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 635 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Fastenal in the 4th quarter worth $68,000. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Stock Down 0.0 %

FAST traded down $0.01 during trading on Friday, reaching $74.78. 2,549,000 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,333,444. The stock has a market cap of $42.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.02. Fastenal has a fifty-two week low of $61.36 and a fifty-two week high of $84.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 4.67 and a quick ratio of 2.28. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $74.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.10.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share 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 in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. Fastenal's quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Fastenal will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Fastenal Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. This is a boost from Fastenal's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Fastenal's payout ratio is currently 85.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research lifted their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Fastenal from $86.00 to $82.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group started coverage on Fastenal in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $88.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Fastenal from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, HSBC cut Fastenal from a "hold" rating to a "reduce" rating and set a $70.00 target price for the company. 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 one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Fastenal has an average 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.