Forsta AP Fonden Has $9.12 Million Stake in Ferguson plc $FERG

Forsta AP Fonden trimmed its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 38.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 41,900 shares of the company’s stock after selling 26,100 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $9,124,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Ferguson by 4.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,168,743 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,071,408,000 after acquiring an additional 806,718 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,687,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,673,977,000 after purchasing an additional 27,312 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 13.8% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,818,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,092,576,000 after purchasing an additional 827,355 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 65.0% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,454,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $713,740,000 after acquiring an additional 1,755,464 shares in the last quarter. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 101.1% during the first quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,165,873 shares of the company’s stock worth $667,498,000 after acquiring an additional 2,094,029 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ferguson

In related news, insider Ian T. Graham sold 4,864 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.22, for a total value of $1,134,382.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,769 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,811,886.18. This represents a 38.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Kevin Michael Murphy sold 8,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.13, for a total transaction of $2,060,344.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 159,931 shares in the company, valued at $37,444,645.03. The trade was a 5.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 29,264 shares of company stock valued at $6,853,349. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ferguson Trading Down 4.1%

Ferguson stock opened at $242.87 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $47.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.18. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $146.00 and a 1-year high of $256.93. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $236.73. 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 earnings results on Tuesday, September 16th. The company reported $3.48 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $8.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.44 billion.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 26th were given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 26th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $235.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Ferguson from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Ferguson in a report on Wednesday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $288.00 target price for the company. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Ferguson from $204.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Ferguson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ferguson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $243.75.

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.