1832 Asset Management L.P. Sells 16,060 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

1832 Asset Management L.P. cut its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 52.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,557 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,060 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $3,180,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 80.1% during the first quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 32,811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,166,000 after purchasing an additional 14,590 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its stake in Ferguson by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 542,455 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,318,000 after acquiring an additional 29,396 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Ferguson by 14.5% in the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 75,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,493,000 after acquiring an additional 9,562 shares in the last quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in Ferguson by 20.8% in the fourth quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 60,406 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,663,000 after acquiring an additional 10,406 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Ferguson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $732,000. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FERG traded up $5.39 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $218.54. The company had a trading volume of 1,065,715 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,110,986. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $201.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $204.87. The stock has a market cap of $44.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.88, a P/E/G ratio of 8.90 and a beta of 1.22. Ferguson plc has a 1 year low of $147.62 and a 1 year high of $224.86. 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 (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 4th. The company reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.05. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.33% and a return on equity of 36.89%. The business had revenue of $7.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.20 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 9.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on FERG shares. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Ferguson from $232.00 to $229.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Ferguson from $217.00 to $211.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Ferguson from $238.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $230.00.

About Ferguson

Ferguson plc distributes plumbing and heating products in the United States and Canada. It offers plumbing and heating solutions to customers in the residential, commercial, civil/infrastructure, and industrial end markets. The company also provides expertise, solutions, and products, including infrastructure, plumbing, appliances, fire, fabrication, and others, as well as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning products under the Ferguson brand name.