Ferguson plc $FERG Stock Bought by New York Life Investment Management LLC

New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 1,242.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,735 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 26,594 shares during the quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $6,397,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of FERG. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in Ferguson in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,789,368,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in Ferguson by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 6,107,108 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,424,075,000 after acquiring an additional 125,317 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,619,995 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,100,474,000 after acquiring an additional 48,544 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,055,351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,796,000 after acquiring an additional 16,866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, W1M Asset Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. W1M Asset Management Ltd now owns 1,980,510 shares of the company’s stock valued at $469,945,000 after acquiring an additional 116,418 shares during the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on FERG. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $325.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Tuesday. DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $278.00 to $284.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $289.50.

Ferguson Trading Down 3.5%

NYSE:FERG opened at $255.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.11. Ferguson plc has a one year low of $212.13 and a one year high of $271.64. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $228.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $237.31.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 9th. The company reported $3.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.28 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $9.03 billion for the quarter. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.73% and a return on equity of 37.69%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 11.50 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 8th. Investors of record on Friday, November 20th will be issued a $0.89 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 20th. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO William Brundage sold 5,986 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.74, for a total value of $1,309,377.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 54,908 shares in the company, valued at $12,010,575.92. The trade was a 9.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider James A. Paisley sold 2,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.59, for a total value of $594,757.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,263 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,360,959.17. This trade represents a 30.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 43,120 shares of company stock worth $9,688,839 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Ferguson

Investors following FERG have been watching these headlines:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts offered supportive outlooks: UBS raised its price target, while Barclays and Robert W. Baird indicated further potential for the shares. UBS price target increase Barclays outlook Baird outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Ferguson recently reported quarterly earnings of $3.43 per share, above the $3.28 consensus estimate, prompting a report that the stock gapped up after the results. Ferguson shares gap up on earnings beat
• Negative Sentiment: Three insiders reported selling a combined 4,312 shares for roughly $1.12 million. The sales reduced each individual’s holdings; one was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Multiple insider sales can create a near-term cautionary signal, though they do not necessarily reflect views on the company’s prospects. Winckler SEC filing Paisley SEC filing Graham SEC filing

Ferguson Profile

Ferguson plc is a distributor of plumbing, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), waterworks, and fire protection products. It supplies contractors and other professional customers with products, services, and expertise for residential, commercial, industrial, and infrastructure projects. The company serves customers primarily in the United States and Canada through branches, distribution centers, and digital channels. Its offerings include pipes, valves and fittings, plumbing fixtures, HVAC equipment, water and wastewater products, and fire protection systems.