iA Global Asset Management Inc. Acquires New Position in Ferguson plc $FERG

iA Global Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 5,574 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,252,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of FERG. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its position in Ferguson by 11.7% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 20,523 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,609,000 after buying an additional 2,145 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in Ferguson by 68.9% in the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 239,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,230,000 after buying an additional 97,791 shares during the period. Fisher Funds Management LTD increased its stake in shares of Ferguson by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Funds Management LTD now owns 160,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,029,000 after acquiring an additional 10,426 shares during the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 3rd quarter valued at about $4,135,000. Finally, Perpetual Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 52.5% during the 3rd quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 589,953 shares of the company’s stock worth $132,492,000 after acquiring an additional 203,065 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on FERG. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ferguson from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 10th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Ferguson from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Ferguson from $237.00 to $246.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Ferguson from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $253.00.

Ferguson Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE:FERG opened at $253.99 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $237.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $233.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 1.01. Ferguson plc has a 12 month low of $146.00 and a 12 month high of $256.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.67 billion, a PE ratio of 25.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.18.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last issued its 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. The company had revenue of $8.17 billion during the quarter. Ferguson had a return on equity of 35.73% and a net margin of 6.28%.Ferguson’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.45 EPS.

Ferguson Increases Dividend

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

More Ferguson News

Here are the key news stories impacting Ferguson this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ferguson’s recent fundamentals support the uptick — the company reported a Dec. quarter EPS beat ($2.84 vs. $2.77 expected), year-over-year revenue growth (~5.1%), a healthy net margin (~6.3%) and very strong return on equity (~35.7%). Those results and margins are investor-friendly and help justify a higher share price.
• Positive Sentiment: Technical and valuation context is supportive: market cap near $50B, P/E ~24.6, the stock is trading above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages and close to its 52‑week high — momentum and relative strength can attract additional buying from trend-following funds.
• Neutral Sentiment: Most of the recent headlines in the supplied list concern actress Rebecca Ferguson (film reviews, PVOD performance, interviews about AI) and are unrelated to Ferguson plc’s business and fundamentals. Rebecca Ferguson’s $715 Million Sci‑Fi Epic Is Hypnotizing Audiences on PVOD
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional entertainment pieces rank or review Rebecca Ferguson’s films (rankings, mixed reviews, PVOD success) — these drive celebrity media attention only and should not affect FERG’s fundamentals. The 11 best Rebecca Ferguson movies, ranked
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage about Rebecca Ferguson’s film “Mercy” and interviews on AI likewise concern entertainment/PR angles, not the industrial distributor. ‘Mercy’ Stars Chris Pratt And Rebecca Ferguson On The Dangers Of AI
• Neutral Sentiment: Several tabloid/royal-family items referencing Sarah Ferguson and Princess Anne are human-interest stories with no direct link to Ferguson plc’s business performance. Sarah Ferguson is trying to save what’s left of her reputation
• Negative Sentiment: One local-policy item — Gov. Ferguson’s supplemental budget proposing a $15.8M cut to University of Washington operating funds — could modestly affect regional economic activity in WA state. However, the impact on Ferguson plc’s North American distribution business is likely negligible unless larger state-level cuts materialize. Gov. Ferguson’s supplemental budget proposes $15.8 million cut to UW operating funds

Ferguson 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.