Victory Capital Management Inc. Has $48.65 Million Stock Position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 47.4% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 245,014 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 78,775 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $48,652,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 303.7% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $904,000 after buying an additional 3,423 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ferguson during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,834,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Ferguson during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,379,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Ferguson by 1,835.1% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 7,779 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,697,000 after buying an additional 7,377 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in Ferguson by 380.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 159,411 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,309,000 after buying an additional 126,242 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Trading Down 1.7 %

Ferguson stock opened at $199.84 on Friday. Ferguson plc has a 52 week low of $163.03 and a 52 week high of $225.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.97, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $199.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $203.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.80.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.77 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 27th were issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 27th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.05%.

Insider Transactions at Ferguson

In other news, CMO Victoria Morrissey sold 1,468 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.20, for a total value of $295,361.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Garland Williams sold 1,118 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.22, for a total transaction of $224,963.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,882 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $378,696.04. The trade was a 37.27 % 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 worth $2,477,901 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on FERG shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Ferguson from $225.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Ferguson from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Oppenheimer started coverage on Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $234.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.38.

Ferguson Company Profile

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.