Suvretta Capital Management LLC Acquires 80,170 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Suvretta Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 55.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 225,210 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 80,170 shares during the period. Ferguson makes up 1.4% of Suvretta Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Suvretta Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $44,720,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in FERG. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Ferguson by 375.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,289,864 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,218,032,000 after acquiring an additional 4,966,821 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 423.0% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,462,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $290,475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183,143 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new stake in Ferguson during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $63,420,000. Waverton Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in Ferguson by 61.0% in the 2nd quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 812,904 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,293,000 after purchasing an additional 308,138 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in Ferguson by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,468,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,668,462,000 after buying an additional 288,935 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FERG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer started coverage on Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $234.00 price objective on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $233.38.

Insider Transactions at Ferguson

In related news, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 1,116 shares in the company, valued at $224,271.36. This trade represents a 70.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Garland Williams sold 1,118 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.22, for a total transaction of $224,963.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,882 shares in the company, valued at approximately $378,696.04. This represents a 37.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,313 shares of company stock worth $2,477,901. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Price Performance

Ferguson stock opened at $213.27 on Friday. 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 plc has a 52 week low of $166.21 and a 52 week high of $225.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $201.47 and a 200-day moving average of $202.59.

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

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 27th were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 27th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.48%. Ferguson’s payout ratio is presently 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.