4,000 Ferguson plc $FERG Shares Bought by Markel Group Inc.

Markel Group Inc. raised its position in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 184,200 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,000 shares during the quarter. Markel Group Inc. owned approximately 0.10% of Ferguson worth $41,007,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 4.3% in the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 1,197 shares of the company’s stock valued at $284,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. L2 Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 5.2% in the second quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 1,109 shares of the company’s stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 3.8% in the second quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $366,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Ferguson by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 1,324 shares of the company’s stock worth $295,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Natural Investments LLC increased its stake in Ferguson by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Natural Investments LLC now owns 944 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Ian Graham sold 1,854 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.74, for a total transaction of $405,543.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 11,511 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,517,916.14. The trade was a 13.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO William Brundage sold 5,986 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.74, for a total value of $1,309,377.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 54,908 shares in the company, valued at $12,010,575.92. This trade represents a 9.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 38,808 shares of company stock valued at $8,571,587. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on FERG shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Ferguson from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $290.00 to $295.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Barclays upped their price objective on Ferguson from $297.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Ferguson from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $285.00 to $288.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $287.44.

Ferguson Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of Ferguson stock opened at $241.75 on Wednesday. Ferguson plc has a 52-week low of $212.13 and a 52-week high of $271.64. The company has a 50 day moving average of $225.10 and a 200 day moving average of $237.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a market capitalization of $46.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.11.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.16. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 37.24%. The company had revenue of $8.75 billion for the quarter. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 11.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Profile

Ferguson plc (NYSE: FERG) is a value-added distributor of plumbing, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), waterworks, fire protection and other building and industrial products. The company serves professional contractors, municipalities, commercial and industrial businesses, and other customers through a network of branches, distribution centers, showrooms and digital platforms.

Its product offering includes pipes, valves, fittings, plumbing fixtures, water and wastewater infrastructure products, HVAC equipment, fire protection systems, industrial supplies and related tools and services.