Vanguard Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in Ferguson plc $FERG

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 0.9% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 19,341,871 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 173,128 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 0.10% of Ferguson worth $4,211,692,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of FERG. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in Ferguson by 145.3% in the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 51.5% in the 2nd quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 230.8% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the 2nd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in shares of Ferguson by 103.6% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 226 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO William Brundage sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.32, for a total transaction of $699,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,631 shares in the company, valued at $12,279,864.92. This trade represents a 5.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Ian T. Graham sold 606 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.33, for a total value of $145,033.98. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,846,191.62. The trade was a 7.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 29,264 shares of company stock worth $6,853,349 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ferguson Stock Performance

FERG stock opened at $237.06 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.18. 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 $146.00 and a 1 year high of $256.93. The company has a 50-day moving average of $237.18.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 16th. The company reported $3.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.48. The firm had revenue of $8.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion. Ferguson had a return on equity of 35.21% and a net margin of 6.03%.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 7th. Investors of record on Friday, September 26th were issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 26th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on FERG. UBS Group lifted their target price on Ferguson from $204.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Zacks Research raised Ferguson to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.75.

About Ferguson

Ferguson Enterprises Inc distributes plumbing and heating products in North America. The company provides expertise, solutions, and products, including infrastructure, plumbing, appliances, fire, and fabrication, as well as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) to residential and non-residential customers.