Sei Investments Co. Acquires 171,572 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 113.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 322,558 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 171,572 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co. owned approximately 0.16% of Ferguson worth $62,463,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. MQS Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 58.4% in the second quarter. MQS Management LLC now owns 4,375 shares of the company’s stock valued at $847,000 after buying an additional 1,613 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Ferguson in the second quarter valued at $2,560,000. Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Ferguson in the second quarter valued at $667,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 32.1% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 189,932 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,658,000 after buying an additional 46,110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co bought a new position in shares of Ferguson in the second quarter valued at $3,365,000. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Down 5.6 %

FERG opened at $196.52 on Monday. Ferguson plc has a fifty-two week low of $147.62 and a fifty-two week high of $225.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.68. The company has a market capitalization of $39.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.48, a P/E/G ratio of 6.13 and a beta of 1.21. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $204.73 and a 200-day moving average of $206.86.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.12. Ferguson had a return on equity of 36.89% and a net margin of 6.33%. The company had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.77 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.63 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, June 4th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 27th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $238.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.57.

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.