Swedbank AB Sells 5,537 Shares of Ferguson plc $FERG

Swedbank AB trimmed its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 4.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 128,811 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,537 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $30,046,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lifted their price target on Ferguson from $295.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Ferguson from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $315.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $271.00 to $281.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $276.61.

Ferguson Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of FERG opened at $221.64 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $207.64 and a 12-month high of $271.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.98 billion, a PE ratio of 25.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.13. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $233.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $240.29.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $7.47 billion during the quarter. Ferguson had a return on equity of 38.81% and a net margin of 6.98%.Ferguson’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.50 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Ferguson plc will post 11.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 5th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is 41.40%.

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.