Inceptionr LLC Buys Shares of 4,045 Ferguson plc $FERG

Inceptionr LLC purchased a new stake in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 4,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $881,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in Ferguson by 145.3% in the 2nd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management raised its position in Ferguson by 51.5% during the second quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 103.6% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 226 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 230.8% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Maseco LLP purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO William Brundage sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.32, for a total transaction of $699,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 52,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,279,864.92. The trade was a 5.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Kevin Michael Murphy sold 8,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.13, for a total value of $2,060,344.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 159,931 shares in the company, valued at $37,444,645.03. This trade represents a 5.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 29,264 shares of company stock valued at $6,853,349 in the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ferguson Trading Up 2.0%

Ferguson stock opened at $253.00 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $239.23. Ferguson plc has a 52 week low of $146.00 and a 52 week high of $256.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 16th. The company reported $3.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.48. Ferguson had a return on equity of 35.21% and a net margin of 6.03%.The firm had revenue of $8.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 7th. Investors of record on Friday, September 26th were issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 26th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is presently 35.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Vertical Research began coverage on Ferguson in a research note on Monday, October 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $291.99 target price on the stock. Barclays boosted their price target on Ferguson from $247.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Ferguson from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Ferguson in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $288.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $243.75.

About Ferguson

Ferguson Enterprises Inc distributes plumbing and heating products in North America. The company provides expertise, solutions, and products, including infrastructure, plumbing, appliances, fire, and fabrication, as well as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) to residential and non-residential customers.