Richard Winckler Sells 1,034 Shares of Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) Stock

Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) CAO Richard Winckler sold 1,034 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.70, for a total value of $240,611.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $339,276.60. The trade was a 41.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Ferguson Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of FERG stock opened at $235.50 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $230.15. Ferguson plc has a 52 week low of $146.00 and a 52 week high of $243.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.17. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 16th. The company reported $3.48 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 company had revenue of $8.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 26th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 26th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is 35.55%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ferguson

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 145.3% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 51.5% during the second quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 230.8% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the second quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 247.4% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Ferguson from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Zacks Research upgraded Ferguson to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Ferguson from $204.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Barclays increased their price objective on Ferguson from $247.00 to $273.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $237.14.

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.