Kestra Investment Management LLC Takes Position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 2,767 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $536,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 80.1% in the 1st quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 32,811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,166,000 after buying an additional 14,590 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Ferguson by 14.5% in the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 75,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,493,000 after acquiring an additional 9,562 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ferguson in the second quarter worth $2,834,000. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Ferguson by 20.8% during the fourth quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 60,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,663,000 after purchasing an additional 10,406 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Duality Advisers LP purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the 1st quarter valued at $5,016,000. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FERG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Ferguson from $238.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $250.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Citigroup lifted their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $231.57.

Ferguson Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FERG opened at $198.62 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $39.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 1.21. Ferguson plc has a 12 month low of $147.62 and a 12 month high of $225.63. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $203.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $206.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted 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. The company had revenue of $7.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.01 billion. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.85% and a return on equity of 37.03%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.77 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Ferguson plc will post 9.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

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. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 27th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.54%.

Ferguson announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, June 4th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Ferguson 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.