Ferguson plc $FERG Shares Sold by Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lessened its holdings in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 88.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,300 shares of the company’s stock after selling 47,349 shares during the quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $1,415,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,341,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,211,692,000 after buying an additional 173,128 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Ferguson by 0.4% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,687,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,673,977,000 after acquiring an additional 27,312 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 39.3% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,255,661 shares of the company’s stock valued at $926,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,201,493 shares during the period. Soroban Capital Partners LP lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 2.8% in the second quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP now owns 3,705,056 shares of the company’s stock valued at $806,776,000 after acquiring an additional 100,559 shares during the period. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,533,124 shares of the company’s stock worth $551,588,000 after purchasing an additional 130,597 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on FERG shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $267.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Ferguson from $268.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Ferguson from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.00.

Ferguson Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of Ferguson stock opened at $251.63 on Thursday. Ferguson plc has a 1 year low of $146.00 and a 1 year high of $256.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $238.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $234.55. The company has a market capitalization of $49.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.18.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The company reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.07. Ferguson had a return on equity of 35.73% and a net margin of 6.28%.The company had revenue of $8.17 billion during the quarter. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.45 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Ferguson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.89 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Ferguson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.96%.

Ferguson Company Profile

Ferguson (NYSE: FERG) is a multinational distributor specializing in plumbing and heating products and related building supplies, serving professional contractors, builders and industrial customers. The company supplies a broad range of products used in residential, commercial and infrastructure projects, including pipes and fittings, valves and controls, HVAC equipment, waterworks materials, plumbing fixtures, pumps and accessories, as well as complementary electrical and specialty product lines.

Ferguson operates a network of branches and distribution centers that provide inventory, logistics and value-added services to trade customers.