Ferguson plc $FERG Shares Bought by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 497.2% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 17,067 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,209 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $3,716,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hemington Wealth Management raised its stake in Ferguson by 51.5% in the second quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Ferguson by 0.8% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 7,394 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,185,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. raised its stake in Ferguson by 4.6% in the first quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 1,386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its stake in Ferguson by 56.5% in the first quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 205 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Ferguson by 6.5% in the first quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,284 shares of the company’s stock valued at $206,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ferguson Stock Performance

Shares of FERG stock opened at $249.40 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $232.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.17. Ferguson plc has a 1 year low of $146.00 and a 1 year high of $251.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.68.

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

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Investors of record on Friday, September 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 26th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.55%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Ian T. Graham sold 4,864 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.22, for a total transaction of $1,134,382.08. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,769 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,811,886.18. This trade represents a 38.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider James A. Paisley sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.97, for a total value of $710,910.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 2,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $523,940.67. This represents a 57.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,264 shares of company stock valued at $6,853,349. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on FERG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Ferguson from $231.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. UBS Group raised their price target on Ferguson from $204.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Barclays raised their price target on Ferguson from $247.00 to $273.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 18th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Ferguson from $235.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Vertical Research initiated coverage on Ferguson in a report on Monday. They set a “buy” rating and a $291.99 price objective on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $240.80.

Ferguson Profile

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.