Ferguson plc $FERG Stock: Robeco Schweiz AG Lowers Position

Robeco Schweiz AG lowered its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 12.8% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 240,773 shares of the company’s stock after selling 35,186 shares during the period. Robeco Schweiz AG’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $53,601,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of FERG. Saudi Central Bank lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 88.5% during the 2nd quarter. Saudi Central Bank now owns 13,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,229,000 after buying an additional 6,389 shares in the last quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich grew its stake in Ferguson by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich now owns 326,515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,509,000 after acquiring an additional 7,916 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new stake in Ferguson in the 2nd quarter worth $2,183,000. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Ferguson by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,619,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,100,474,000 after acquiring an additional 48,544 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in Ferguson by 13.2% in the 2nd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 96,108 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,932,000 after acquiring an additional 11,196 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on FERG. Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. They set a “hold” rating and a $252.00 price objective for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. UBS Group boosted 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. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $278.00 to $284.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $287.28.

Ferguson Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of FERG opened at $226.99 on Friday. Ferguson plc has a 52-week low of $212.13 and a 52-week high of $271.64. The company has a market capitalization of $43.91 billion, a PE ratio of 26.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $225.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $234.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.23 by $0.16. The business 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 analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 11.42 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Friday, August 21st were given a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.83%.

Insider Activity

In other Ferguson news, insider Ian Graham sold 1,097 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $252,310.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,271,020. The trade was a 10.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO William Thees, Jr. sold 353 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.50, for a total transaction of $79,248.50. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 31,745 shares in the company, valued at $7,126,752.50. This trade represents a 1.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 38,808 shares of company stock valued at $8,571,587 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

About Ferguson

Ferguson plc (NYSE: FERG) is a value-added distributor of plumbing, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), waterworks, fire protection and other building and industrial products. The company serves professional contractors, municipalities, commercial and industrial businesses, and other customers through a network of branches, distribution centers, showrooms and digital platforms.

Its product offering includes pipes, valves, fittings, plumbing fixtures, water and wastewater infrastructure products, HVAC equipment, fire protection systems, industrial supplies and related tools and services.