VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Makes New $23.05 Million Investment in Ferguson plc $FERG

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 97,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,045,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FERG. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 23,684.2% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 69,745,828 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,552,777,000 after purchasing an additional 69,452,584 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in Ferguson in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,789,368,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 150.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,366,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,085,256,000 after buying an additional 5,631,554 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Ferguson during the 4th quarter worth $498,005,000. Finally, Durable Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in Ferguson during the 3rd quarter worth $244,561,000. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on FERG. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Ferguson from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $315.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Zelman & Associates upgraded Ferguson from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $285.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, July 17th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Ferguson from $252.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $261.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $280.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Ferguson has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $285.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ferguson news, insider Jake Schlicher sold 5,177 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.92, for a total value of $1,195,472.84. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 9,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,191,430.80. This trade represents a 35.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Price Performance

Ferguson stock opened at $228.53 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.85, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.13. The business has a 50-day moving average of $235.33 and a 200-day moving average of $237.85. Ferguson plc has a 1 year low of $207.64 and a 1 year high of $271.64.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.16. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 37.24%. The business had revenue of $8.75 billion for the quarter. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 11.42 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be paid a $0.89 dividend. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.83%.

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.