Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) Receives $232.50 Consensus PT from Brokerages

Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $233.38.

Several analysts have recently commented on FERG shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Ferguson from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Barclays raised their price target on Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Ferguson from $238.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Ferguson from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th.

Insider Activity at Ferguson

In related news, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.96, for a total value of $527,319.04. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,116 shares in the company, valued at approximately $224,271.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Garland Williams sold 1,118 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.22, for a total value of $224,963.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $378,696.04. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.96, for a total value of $527,319.04. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $224,271.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,313 shares of company stock worth $2,477,901. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ferguson

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FERG. Norden Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Ferguson during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,675,000. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 6.9% during the first quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 38,535 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,417,000 after purchasing an additional 2,487 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 4.5% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,321 shares of the company’s stock valued at $507,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 10.6% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 21,757 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,752,000 after purchasing an additional 2,077 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capstone Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Ferguson by 132.6% in the 1st quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,375 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,829,000 after buying an additional 4,775 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Down 0.0 %

Ferguson stock opened at $210.82 on Friday. Ferguson has a twelve month low of $154.61 and a twelve month high of $225.63. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $198.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $203.46. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $42.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.77, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.20.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Ferguson had a return on equity of 36.53% and a net margin of 5.85%. The company had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.01 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.77 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Ferguson will post 9.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 27th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is currently 37.05%.

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.