JPMorgan Chase & Co. Trims Holdings in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its holdings in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 38.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,420,450 shares of the company’s stock after selling 881,790 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $282,059,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 3.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,468,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,668,462,000 after acquiring an additional 288,935 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Ferguson by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,541,079 shares of the company’s stock valued at $905,230,000 after purchasing an additional 161,662 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Ferguson by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,197,621 shares of the company’s stock worth $633,409,000 after purchasing an additional 25,677 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,371,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $477,858,000 after purchasing an additional 133,769 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 10.9% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,563,558 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,781,000 after purchasing an additional 153,757 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on FERG. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Ferguson from $245.00 to $234.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $219.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. UBS Group upped their price target on Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Berenberg Bank raised their price objective on Ferguson from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $230.44.

Ferguson Stock Performance

Shares of FERG stock opened at $175.14 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $35.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.21. 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 one year low of $172.00 and a one year high of $225.63. The company’s 50-day moving average is $199.49 and its 200 day moving average is $200.68.

Ferguson Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 6th. Investors of record on Friday, December 20th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 20th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. This is an increase from Ferguson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of Ferguson 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,116 shares in the company, valued at $224,271.36. The trade was a 70.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Richard Winckler sold 1,325 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $201,750. The trade was a 56.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 12,313 shares of company stock worth $2,477,901 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.