Dark Forest Capital Management LP Acquires 9,464 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Dark Forest Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 520.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,282 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,464 shares during the quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $1,958,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 906.7% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 151 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in Ferguson by 92.5% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 258 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Ferguson in the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 41.1% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on FERG shares. Bank of America upgraded shares of Ferguson from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $185.00 to $225.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Ferguson from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $193.00 price target (down from $230.00) on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays cut their target price on Ferguson from $211.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “hold” rating and a $174.00 price target for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ferguson currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.38.

Ferguson Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FERG opened at $163.12 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $165.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $182.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Ferguson plc has a 52 week low of $146.00 and a 52 week high of $225.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.06). Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.76 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.74 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.84%.

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.