Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Has $12.70 Million Stake in Ferguson plc $FERG

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund grew its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 20.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,300 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,900 shares during the quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $12,695,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hemington Wealth Management increased its position in Ferguson by 51.5% during the 2nd quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 153 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 230.8% during the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Maseco LLP acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson during the second quarter worth $40,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 56.5% during the first quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 205 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 103.6% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 226 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Richard Winckler sold 1,034 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.70, for a total transaction of $240,611.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 1,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $339,276.60. This trade represents a 41.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider James A. Paisley sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.97, for a total value of $710,910.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 2,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $523,940.67. This represents a 57.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 29,264 shares of company stock worth $6,853,349. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FERG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group upped their target price on Ferguson from $204.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Ferguson from $231.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $260.00 to $262.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ferguson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $240.80.

Ferguson Stock Performance

NYSE:FERG opened at $247.88 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $48.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.54, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $232.80. 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 plc has a fifty-two week low of $146.00 and a fifty-two week high of $252.36.

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

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 26th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.