Ferguson plc $FERG Shares Acquired by Harbour Investments Inc.

Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 61.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 242 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the quarter. Harbour Investments Inc.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $53,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in FERG. Untitled Investments LP acquired a new position in Ferguson in the 1st quarter worth $5,953,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 11.9% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,932,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,718,000 after buying an additional 205,531 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 14.3% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 5,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $928,000 after buying an additional 722 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 96.1% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 29,251 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,687,000 after buying an additional 14,338 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 37.5% in the 1st quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 13,042 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,090,000 after buying an additional 3,559 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on FERG shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $204.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $231.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Vertical Research began coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Monday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $291.99 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $240.80.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO William Brundage sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.32, for a total transaction of $699,960.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 52,631 shares in the company, valued at $12,279,864.92. This represents a 5.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ian T. Graham sold 606 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.33, for a total transaction of $145,033.98. Following the sale, the insider owned 7,714 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,846,191.62. This trade represents a 7.28% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,264 shares of company stock valued at $6,853,349 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:FERG opened at $249.40 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $48.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.70, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.17. Ferguson plc has a fifty-two week low of $146.00 and a fifty-two week high of $251.15. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $232.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

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

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Investors of record on Friday, September 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 26th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is 35.55%.

Ferguson Profile

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.