Ferguson plc $FERG Shares Purchased by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 0.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,029,680 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,158 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 0.52% of Ferguson worth $224,213,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FERG. Untitled Investments LP purchased a new position in Ferguson during the first quarter worth about $5,953,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 11.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,932,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,718,000 after buying an additional 205,531 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 96.1% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 29,251 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,687,000 after buying an additional 14,338 shares during the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp raised its position in shares of Ferguson by 37.5% during the 1st quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 13,042 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,090,000 after buying an additional 3,559 shares during the period. Finally, Empower Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Ferguson in the first quarter valued at approximately $843,000. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Ian T. Graham sold 606 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.33, for a total transaction of $145,033.98. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 7,714 shares in the company, valued at $1,846,191.62. The trade was a 7.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Allison Stirrup sold 969 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $234.23, for a total value of $226,968.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,058 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,184,735.34. This trade represents a 16.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 29,264 shares of company stock valued at $6,853,349 over the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ferguson Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE:FERG opened at $242.38 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.18. 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 plc has a 52 week low of $146.00 and a 52 week high of $256.93. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $236.81.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last released 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 net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 35.21%. The firm had revenue of $8.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 26th were paid a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 26th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FERG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial raised their target price on Ferguson from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Ferguson from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $204.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Zacks Research raised shares of Ferguson to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $231.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ferguson currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $243.75.

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.