Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) Price Target Raised to $231.00

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) had its target price increased by Royal Bank of Canada from $189.00 to $231.00 in a report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on FERG. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Ferguson from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 price target on shares of Ferguson and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Ferguson in a report on Monday, March 17th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Ferguson from $190.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.93.

Ferguson Stock Performance

Shares of Ferguson stock opened at $211.56 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $173.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $178.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.40, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.13. Ferguson has a 52 week low of $146.00 and a 52 week high of $225.63.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 3rd. The company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.44. Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ferguson will post 9.4 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 20th will be paid a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 20th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.40%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FERG. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Ferguson by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,168,743 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,071,408,000 after purchasing an additional 806,718 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in Ferguson by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,007,892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,740,049,000 after buying an additional 1,539,889 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 24.5% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,660,299 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,227,410,000 after buying an additional 1,506,024 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 13.8% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,818,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,092,576,000 after acquiring an additional 827,355 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,935,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $856,746,000 after acquiring an additional 62,887 shares during the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.