River Road Asset Management LLC Has $4.11 Million Stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

River Road Asset Management LLC lowered its position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 26.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 20,682 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,461 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $4,107,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 303.7% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $904,000 after purchasing an additional 3,423 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 14.5% in the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 75,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,493,000 after purchasing an additional 9,562 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,834,000. Duality Advisers LP acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson in the 1st quarter worth approximately $5,016,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 53.4% in the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 319,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,953,000 after purchasing an additional 111,357 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on FERG. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $238.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $234.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $250.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $232.50.

Insider Activity at Ferguson

In related news, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were 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 approximately $224,271.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Ferguson news, CAO Richard Winckler sold 1,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 0.00 % 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, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.96, for a total transaction of $527,319.04. Following the sale, the vice president now directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,313 shares of company stock worth $2,477,901. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ferguson Stock Performance

Shares of FERG stock opened at $202.09 on Wednesday. Ferguson plc has a 12 month low of $154.61 and a 12 month high of $225.63. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $40.57 billion, a PE ratio of 20.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.20. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $198.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $203.41.

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

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 27th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Ferguson’s payout ratio is currently 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.