Hsbc Holdings PLC Boosts Stock Position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 0.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 679,776 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 617 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $118,077,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. SIH Partners LLLP purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson in the fourth quarter valued at $21,190,000. Beacon Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Ferguson by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Beacon Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,991 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,040,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG increased its position in shares of Ferguson by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 117,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,417,000 after buying an additional 12,649 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 94,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,330,000 after buying an additional 6,949 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 115,470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,101,000 after acquiring an additional 1,165 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of FERG stock opened at $163.12 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $32.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $165.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $182.77. Ferguson plc has a one year low of $146.00 and a one year high of $225.63.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.76 billion. Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.74 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.04%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is 40.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on FERG. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Ferguson from $211.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “hold” rating and a $174.00 price objective on the stock. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on Ferguson from $234.00 to $189.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Ferguson from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $193.00 price objective (down from $230.00) on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $199.38.

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.