Wesleyan Assurance Society Lowers Holdings in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Wesleyan Assurance Society cut its stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 501,520 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,084 shares during the period. Ferguson accounts for 6.7% of Wesleyan Assurance Society’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Wesleyan Assurance Society’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $87,004,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have 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 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 151 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. LGT Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 106.3% in the fourth quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Berbice Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Ferguson in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 92.5% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. 81.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “hold” rating and a $174.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Ferguson in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $204.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup lowered their target price on Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Ferguson in a report on Monday, March 17th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $199.38.

Ferguson Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FERG opened at $183.34 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $165.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $179.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.14. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $146.00 and a 12-month high of $225.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.76 billion. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.74 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st were paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. Ferguson’s payout ratio is 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.