Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Buys New Holdings in Ferguson plc $FERG

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 4,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,002,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of FERG. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its position in Ferguson by 11.7% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 20,523 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,609,000 after purchasing an additional 2,145 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 68.9% during the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 239,783 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,230,000 after buying an additional 97,791 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Funds Management LTD lifted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Funds Management LTD now owns 160,428 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,029,000 after buying an additional 10,426 shares during the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the 3rd quarter worth about $4,135,000. Finally, Perpetual Ltd grew its stake in Ferguson by 52.5% in the 3rd quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 589,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,492,000 after buying an additional 203,065 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on FERG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Vertical Research began coverage on Ferguson in a report on Monday, October 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $291.99 price target for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Ferguson from $262.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.00.

Ferguson Stock Performance

NYSE:FERG opened at $253.99 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $237.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $233.93. The company has a market cap of $49.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.66, a PEG ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.88. Ferguson plc has a fifty-two week low of $146.00 and a fifty-two week high of $256.93.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.07. Ferguson had a return on equity of 35.73% and a net margin of 6.28%.The company had revenue of $8.17 billion for the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.45 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Ferguson Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.89 per share. This is a boost from Ferguson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Ferguson’s payout ratio is currently 35.96%.

More Ferguson News

Here are the key news stories impacting Ferguson this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ferguson’s recent fundamentals support the uptick — the company reported a Dec. quarter EPS beat ($2.84 vs. $2.77 expected), year-over-year revenue growth (~5.1%), a healthy net margin (~6.3%) and very strong return on equity (~35.7%). Those results and margins are investor-friendly and help justify a higher share price.
• Positive Sentiment: Technical and valuation context is supportive: market cap near $50B, P/E ~24.6, the stock is trading above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages and close to its 52‑week high — momentum and relative strength can attract additional buying from trend-following funds.
• Neutral Sentiment: Most of the recent headlines in the supplied list concern actress Rebecca Ferguson (film reviews, PVOD performance, interviews about AI) and are unrelated to Ferguson plc’s business and fundamentals. Rebecca Ferguson’s $715 Million Sci‑Fi Epic Is Hypnotizing Audiences on PVOD
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional entertainment pieces rank or review Rebecca Ferguson’s films (rankings, mixed reviews, PVOD success) — these drive celebrity media attention only and should not affect FERG’s fundamentals. The 11 best Rebecca Ferguson movies, ranked
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage about Rebecca Ferguson’s film “Mercy” and interviews on AI likewise concern entertainment/PR angles, not the industrial distributor. ‘Mercy’ Stars Chris Pratt And Rebecca Ferguson On The Dangers Of AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Several tabloid/royal-family items referencing Sarah Ferguson and Princess Anne are human-interest stories with no direct link to Ferguson plc’s business performance. Sarah Ferguson is trying to save what’s left of her reputation
• Negative Sentiment: One local-policy item — Gov. Ferguson’s supplemental budget proposing a $15.8M cut to University of Washington operating funds — could modestly affect regional economic activity in WA state. However, the impact on Ferguson plc’s North American distribution business is likely negligible unless larger state-level cuts materialize. Gov. Ferguson’s supplemental budget proposes $15.8 million cut to UW operating funds

Ferguson 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.