Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) Insider Jake Schlicher Sells 5,177 Shares

Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) insider Jake Schlicher sold 5,177 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.92, for a total transaction of $1,195,472.84. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,490 shares in the company, valued at $2,191,430.80. This trade represents a 35.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Ferguson Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of NYSE:FERG opened at $219.09 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $42.38 billion, a PE ratio of 25.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $207.64 and a 12-month high of $271.64. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $236.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $238.86.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $8.75 billion for the quarter. Ferguson had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 6.82%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Ferguson plc will post 11.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, May 5th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a $0.89 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.83%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on FERG shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $252.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of Ferguson from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $285.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, July 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $261.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Ferguson from $297.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ferguson presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $285.93.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FERG. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its position in Ferguson by 23,684.2% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 69,745,828 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,552,777,000 after acquiring an additional 69,452,584 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Ferguson by 150.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,366,465 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,085,256,000 after buying an additional 5,631,554 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in Ferguson during the second quarter worth $1,789,368,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Ferguson by 2.1% in 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. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,516,764 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,005,567,000 after buying an additional 79,296 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ferguson

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.