&Partners Purchases New Position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

&Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 928 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FERG. Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its position in shares of Ferguson by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 542,455 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,318,000 after purchasing an additional 29,396 shares during the period. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in Ferguson by 20.8% during the 4th quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 60,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,663,000 after acquiring an additional 10,406 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in Ferguson during the fourth quarter valued at about $732,000. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 44.9% during the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 2,371,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $457,905,000 after acquiring an additional 735,270 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 807.2% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 14,515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,802,000 after purchasing an additional 12,915 shares during the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FERG. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Ferguson from $217.00 to $211.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $236.00 to $232.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $221.50.

Ferguson Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FERG opened at $195.37 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.45 billion, a PE ratio of 20.66, a PEG ratio of 8.18 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $147.62 and a 1-year high of $224.86. The business’s 50 day moving average is $208.82 and its 200-day moving average is $202.99.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 4th. The company reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.05. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.33% and a return on equity of 36.89%. The firm had revenue of $7.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.32 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.20 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Ferguson plc will post 9.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. Ferguson’s payout ratio is presently 34.54%.

About Ferguson

Ferguson plc distributes plumbing and heating products in the United States and Canada. It offers plumbing and heating solutions to customers in the residential, commercial, civil/infrastructure, and industrial end markets. The company also provides expertise, solutions, and products, including infrastructure, plumbing, appliances, fire, fabrication, and others, as well as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning products under the Ferguson brand name.