BNP Paribas Financial Markets Invests $63.42 Million in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 319,382 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,420,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in FERG. Asset Dedication LLC bought a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in Ferguson during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Ferguson during the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Ferguson during the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Ferguson during the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CMO Victoria Morrissey sold 1,468 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.20, for a total transaction of $295,361.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,047,246. The trade was a 22.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Ian T. Graham sold 5,778 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.27, for a total transaction of $1,162,938.06. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,938 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,195,141.26. This trade represents a 49.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,313 shares of company stock valued at $2,477,901 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ FERG opened at $213.27 on Thursday. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $166.21 and a 1-year high of $225.63. The company has a market cap of $42.81 billion, a PE ratio of 21.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company has a 50-day moving average of $201.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $202.52.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.01 billion. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.85% and a return on equity of 36.53%. Ferguson’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.77 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 27th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on FERG. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $234.00 price target for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $233.38.

About Ferguson

Ferguson plc distributes plumbing and heating products in the United States and Canada. It offers plumbing and heating solutions to customers in the residential, commercial, civil/infrastructure, and industrial end markets. The company also provides expertise, solutions, and products, including infrastructure, plumbing, appliances, fire, fabrication, and others, as well as heating, ventilation, and air conditioning products under the Ferguson brand name.