Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 7,862 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 32.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 32,025 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,862 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $6,359,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Ferguson by 375.4% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,289,864 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,218,032,000 after purchasing an additional 4,966,821 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Ferguson by 589.0% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,619,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $353,778,000 after purchasing an additional 1,384,570 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 10.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,563,558 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,781,000 after purchasing an additional 153,757 shares in the last quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP now owns 1,104,289 shares of the company’s stock valued at $213,846,000 after purchasing an additional 15,700 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 967,849 shares of the company’s stock worth $187,424,000 after buying an additional 18,504 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Stock Performance

FERG opened at $202.74 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $40.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.20. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $200.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $202.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.00. Ferguson plc has a 1 year low of $164.90 and a 1 year high of $225.63.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.01 billion. Ferguson had a return on equity of 36.53% and a net margin of 5.85%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.77 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th were given a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 27th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is 37.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on FERG. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Barclays boosted their target price on Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Ferguson from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Ferguson from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ferguson news, SVP Garland Williams sold 1,118 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.22, for a total value of $224,963.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $378,696.04. The trade was a 37.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Richard Winckler sold 1,325 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.75, for a total transaction of $267,318.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $201,750. This trade represents a 56.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,313 shares of company stock worth $2,477,901 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.