Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) Shares Sold by Aviva PLC

Aviva PLC cut its stake in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 252,553 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,800 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC owned approximately 0.13% of Ferguson worth $43,836,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Ferguson by 32.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 32,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,359,000 after buying an additional 7,862 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 778,737 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,247,000 after acquiring an additional 52,776 shares during the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the 4th quarter worth about $587,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in Ferguson in the 3rd quarter valued at about $970,000. Finally, Clean Yield Group boosted its stake in Ferguson by 27.1% during the 4th quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 25,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,506,000 after purchasing an additional 5,534 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on FERG shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $205.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Ferguson in a research report on Monday, March 17th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Barclays reduced their price target on Ferguson from $211.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Bank of America raised Ferguson from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $185.00 to $225.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Ferguson from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $198.62.

Ferguson Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FERG opened at $155.22 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.63, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $149.28 and a 1-year high of $225.63. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $171.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $186.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.68.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by ($0.06). Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.76 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.74 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.84%.

About Ferguson

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.