Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Invests $11.39 Million in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 65,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,389,000.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Ferguson by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,541,079 shares of the company’s stock worth $905,230,000 after purchasing an additional 161,662 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 249.8% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 166,084 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,979,000 after buying an additional 118,600 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Ferguson by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 74,357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,765,000 after acquiring an additional 2,086 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 3rd quarter valued at $50,570,000. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 76.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 867,593 shares of the company’s stock valued at $172,281,000 after buying an additional 377,283 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on FERG shares. 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. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $189.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Zelman & Associates downgraded Ferguson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $193.00 price objective (down from $230.00) on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Berenberg Bank upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ferguson currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $198.62.

Ferguson Trading Down 2.0 %

NASDAQ:FERG opened at $155.22 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.04 billion, a PE ratio of 18.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $171.69 and its 200 day moving average is $186.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Ferguson plc has a 12 month low of $144.82 and a 12 month high of $225.63.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.06). Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.76 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.74 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

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

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.