Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) Shares Sold by Natixis Advisors LLC

Natixis Advisors LLC reduced its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 52.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 63,971 shares of the company’s stock after selling 70,277 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $10,250,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,007,892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,740,049,000 after purchasing an additional 1,539,889 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 24.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,660,299 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,227,410,000 after purchasing an additional 1,506,024 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 25.9% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,991,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,039,935,000 after purchasing an additional 1,231,120 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,935,419 shares of the company’s stock valued at $856,746,000 after purchasing an additional 62,887 shares during the period. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 29.6% in the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 3,635,707 shares of the company’s stock valued at $582,452,000 after purchasing an additional 831,112 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Ferguson from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Ferguson from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Ferguson from $189.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $220.00 price objective (up from $195.00) on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Berenberg Bank restated a “hold” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $220.64.

Ferguson Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of Ferguson stock opened at $221.89 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $43.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Ferguson plc has a 52-week low of $146.00 and a 52-week high of $228.80. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $214.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $186.40.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 3rd. The company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.44. Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.32 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 20th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is currently 41.40%.

Ferguson Profile

Ferguson plc distributes plumbing and heating products in the United States and Canada. It offers plumbing and heating solutions to customers in the residential, commercial, civil/infrastructure, and industrial end markets. The company also provides expertise, solutions, and products, including infrastructure, plumbing, appliances, fire, fabrication, and others, as well as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning products under the Ferguson brand name.