Inspire Advisors LLC Acquires 233 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Inspire Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 8.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,893 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $574,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. OneAscent Financial Services LLC raised its stake in Ferguson by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 2,584 shares of the company’s stock valued at $565,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Ferguson by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $342,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its stake in Ferguson by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 3,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $686,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Transatlantique Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Ferguson by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Transatlantique Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $394,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Ferguson by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $412,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ferguson

In related news, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.96, for a total transaction of $527,319.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,116 shares in the company, valued at $224,271.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Ferguson news, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,116 shares in the company, valued at approximately $224,271.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ian T. Graham sold 5,778 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.27, for a total value of $1,162,938.06. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,938 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,195,141.26. This represents a 0.00 % 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 in the last quarter. 0.15% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Ferguson from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Ferguson from $250.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Ferguson from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $232.29.

Ferguson Price Performance

Shares of Ferguson stock opened at $204.59 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $41.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.80. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $200.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $205.19. Ferguson plc has a one year low of $147.62 and a one year high of $225.63.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business earned $2.77 EPS. Ferguson’s revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.86 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 27th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is currently 34.54%.

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.