Erste Asset Management GmbH Acquires Shares of 2,229 Ferguson plc $FERG

Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 2,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $506,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Ferguson by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,418,334 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,323,104,000 after purchasing an additional 102,850 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Ferguson by 1.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,437,468 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,000,152,000 after purchasing an additional 81,094 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Ferguson by 2.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,367,818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $980,921,000 after purchasing an additional 112,157 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Ferguson by 22.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,734,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $838,786,000 after purchasing an additional 682,666 shares during the period. Finally, Soroban Capital Partners LP grew its holdings in Ferguson by 2.8% in the second quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP now owns 3,705,056 shares of the company’s stock valued at $806,776,000 after purchasing an additional 100,559 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FERG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Ferguson in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Ferguson from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. UBS Group raised their target price on Ferguson from $220.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Ferguson from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on Ferguson from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ferguson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $277.77.

Ferguson Stock Performance

NYSE FERG opened at $224.82 on Thursday. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $207.64 and a 1-year high of $271.64. The company has a market cap of $43.60 billion, a PE ratio of 26.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $241.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $241.22.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.14. Ferguson had a return on equity of 38.81% and a net margin of 6.98%.The firm had revenue of $7.47 billion for the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.50 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 11.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.89 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.40%.

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.