Ferguson plc $FERG Stock: Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Raises Stake

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its holdings in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 29.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,023 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,163 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $6,016,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in Ferguson in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,789,368,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 125,317 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Ferguson by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,619,995 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,100,474,000 after buying an additional 48,544 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in shares of Ferguson by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 2,868,181 shares of the company’s stock valued at $668,809,000 after buying an additional 240,666 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Ferguson by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,055,351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,796,000 after buying an additional 16,866 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on FERG shares. UBS Group boosted their target price on Ferguson from $252.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Ferguson from $290.00 to $286.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Melius Research assumed coverage on Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $252.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on Ferguson from $297.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Ferguson from $285.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ferguson presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $285.31.

Ferguson Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE FERG opened at $228.25 on Thursday. Ferguson plc has a fifty-two week low of $212.13 and a fifty-two week high of $271.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $226.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $234.42.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.23 by $0.16. The firm 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%. On average, analysts predict that Ferguson plc will post 11.42 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Ferguson

In related news, insider Ian Graham sold 1,097 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.00, for a total transaction of $252,310.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 9,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,271,020. This trade represents a 10.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Jake Schlicher sold 314 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 value of $70,493.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 8,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,935,414.50. This represents a 3.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 38,808 shares of company stock worth $8,571,587 in the last three months. 0.15% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ferguson Company Profile

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.