Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $285.57 According to Brokerages

Shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, ten have given a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $283.33.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on FERG shares. Barclays raised their price target on Ferguson from $297.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Ferguson in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Finally, Melius Research started coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday. They issued a “hold” rating and a $252.00 target price for the company.

Ferguson Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE FERG opened at $223.55 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Ferguson has a 1-year low of $212.13 and a 1-year high of $271.64. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $231.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $234.65. The company has a market capitalization of $43.25 billion, a PE ratio of 26.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.14.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.16. Ferguson had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 6.82%.The firm had revenue of $8.75 billion during the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ferguson will post 11.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.89 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.83%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jake Schlicher sold 5,177 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,191,430.80. This represents a 35.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ferguson

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norman Fields Gottscho Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Norman Fields Gottscho Capital Management LLC now owns 14,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,256,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 26.1% during the 3rd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional raised its stake in shares of Ferguson by 12,555.9% in the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 36,449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,114,000 after acquiring an additional 36,161 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ferguson by 10.6% in the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 31,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,523,000 after acquiring an additional 3,047 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 6,096 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,447,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Company Profile

Ferguson plc (NYSE: FERG) is a North American distributor of plumbing and heating products, supplying professional customers across the residential, commercial, industrial and infrastructure markets. The company serves contractors, builders, remodelers, municipalities, industrial businesses and other trade professionals through branch locations, distribution centers and digital ordering platforms.

Its product offerings include plumbing supplies and fixtures, heating and cooling equipment, water and wastewater products, fire protection systems, waterworks materials, industrial piping and related maintenance, repair and operating supplies.