Gallacher Capital Management LLC Purchases Shares of 2,719 Ferguson plc $FERG

Gallacher Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 2,719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $634,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FERG. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Ferguson by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,979 shares of the company’s stock valued at $886,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC raised its position in Ferguson by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 3,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $697,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $375,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $150,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 431 shares of the company’s stock valued at $96,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Price Performance

FERG stock opened at $233.76 on Friday. Ferguson plc has a one year low of $207.64 and a one year high of $271.64. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $230.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $240.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.34 billion, a PE ratio of 27.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.14. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.98% and a return on equity of 38.81%. The business had revenue of $7.47 billion for the quarter. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 11.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 5th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is presently 41.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Ferguson from $295.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ferguson from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Ferguson from $271.00 to $281.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $276.61.

About Ferguson

Ferguson (NYSE: FERG) is a multinational distributor specializing in plumbing and heating products and related building supplies, serving professional contractors, builders and industrial customers. The company supplies a broad range of products used in residential, commercial and infrastructure projects, including pipes and fittings, valves and controls, HVAC equipment, waterworks materials, plumbing fixtures, pumps and accessories, as well as complementary electrical and specialty product lines.

Ferguson operates a network of branches and distribution centers that provide inventory, logistics and value-added services to trade customers.