Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) Position Reduced by Impax Asset Management Group plc

Impax Asset Management Group plc cut its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 64.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 68,632 shares of the company’s stock after selling 123,875 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $13,628,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bleakley Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Ferguson during the first quarter valued at approximately $260,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its position in Ferguson by 4.3% during the first quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 9,313 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,034,000 after acquiring an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. grew its holdings in Ferguson by 9.9% during the first quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 66,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,499,000 after purchasing an additional 5,957 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its holdings in Ferguson by 0.3% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 137,531 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,019,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its holdings in Ferguson by 7.1% during the first quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 28,966 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,327,000 after purchasing an additional 1,908 shares during the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Richard Winckler sold 1,325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.75, for a total transaction of $267,318.75. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $201,750. This represents a 56.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Garland Williams sold 1,118 shares of the 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,882 shares in the company, valued at $378,696.04. This trade represents a 37.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,313 shares of company stock valued at $2,477,901 in the last 90 days. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Robert W. Baird increased 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. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $234.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $233.38.

Ferguson Price Performance

NASDAQ:FERG opened at $199.84 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $40.12 billion, a PE ratio of 23.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.20. Ferguson plc has a 12 month low of $163.03 and a 12 month high of $225.63. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $199.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $203.19.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.12. Ferguson had a return on equity of 36.53% and a net margin of 5.85%. The business had revenue of $7.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.77 EPS. Ferguson’s revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.77 EPS 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 issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 27th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is 37.05%.

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.