W1M Asset Management Ltd Has $469.94 Million Holdings in Ferguson plc $FERG

W1M Asset Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 6.2% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,980,510 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 116,418 shares during the period. Ferguson accounts for approximately 4.3% of W1M Asset Management Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. W1M Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $469,945,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in FERG. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Ferguson by 150.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,366,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,085,256,000 after purchasing an additional 5,631,554 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson in the fourth quarter worth $498,005,000. Durable Capital Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson in the third quarter worth $244,561,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 588.1% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,087,523 shares of the company’s stock worth $244,236,000 after acquiring an additional 929,475 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Ferguson by 502.8% during the third quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 765,725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $171,967,000 after acquiring an additional 638,692 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on FERG shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $261.00 price target on shares of Ferguson in a report on Tuesday. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on Ferguson from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Ferguson from $285.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings raised Ferguson from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Ferguson from $281.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $285.93.

Ferguson Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of FERG opened at $242.36 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $237.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $240.50. The company has a market cap of $46.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Ferguson plc has a twelve month low of $207.64 and a twelve month high of $271.64.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.23 by $0.16. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 37.24%. The company had revenue of $8.75 billion for the quarter. As a group, analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 11.42 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.83%.

Ferguson declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, May 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.