MQS Management LLC Acquires 1,613 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

MQS Management LLC grew its stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 58.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,375 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,613 shares during the period. Ferguson makes up approximately 0.5% of MQS Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest position. MQS Management LLC’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $847,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. 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 worth $1,218,032,000 after acquiring an additional 4,966,821 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Ferguson by 589.0% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,619,637 shares of the company’s stock valued at $353,778,000 after buying an additional 1,384,570 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Ferguson by 10.9% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,563,558 shares of the company’s stock worth $302,781,000 after buying an additional 153,757 shares during the period. First Pacific Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 1.4% during the second quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP now owns 1,104,289 shares of the company’s stock worth $213,846,000 after buying an additional 15,700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 975,924 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,422,000 after buying an additional 84,390 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FERG opened at $205.52 on Thursday. Ferguson plc has a 12 month low of $147.62 and a 12 month high of $225.63. The firm has a market cap of $41.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.46, a P/E/G ratio of 6.13 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $204.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $206.95.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.12. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.33% and a return on equity of 36.89%. The business had revenue of $7.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.77 earnings per share. Ferguson’s revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 9.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 4th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FERG has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays raised their target price on Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Ferguson from $250.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Ferguson from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.57.

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.