Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt Has $2.15 Million Stake in Ferguson plc $FERG

Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt boosted its position in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 545.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 9,676 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,176 shares during the period. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $2,154,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC now owns 75,352 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,776,000 after buying an additional 452 shares during the period. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 66.5% in the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,000 after buying an additional 358 shares during the period. Vise Technologies Inc. lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 4,672 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,040,000 after buying an additional 387 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in Ferguson by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 13,274 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,955,000 after purchasing an additional 946 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Ferguson by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $375,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Trading Up 2.1%

NYSE:FERG opened at $230.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $241.01 and a 200-day moving average of $241.41. The company has a market cap of $44.78 billion, a PE ratio of 26.85, a PEG ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.15. Ferguson plc has a one year low of $207.64 and a one year high of $271.64.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $7.47 billion during the quarter. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.98% and a return on equity of 38.81%. The company’s revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 11.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.89 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Ferguson’s payout ratio is presently 41.40%.

Ferguson announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, May 5th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on FERG shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $295.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered Ferguson from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Ferguson from $271.00 to $281.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $273.64.

Ferguson Company Profile

Ferguson (NYSE: FERG) is a multinational distributor specializing in plumbing and heating products and related building supplies, serving professional contractors, builders and industrial customers. The company supplies a broad range of products used in residential, commercial and infrastructure projects, including pipes and fittings, valves and controls, HVAC equipment, waterworks materials, plumbing fixtures, pumps and accessories, as well as complementary electrical and specialty product lines.

Ferguson operates a network of branches and distribution centers that provide inventory, logistics and value-added services to trade customers.