Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Decreases Stock Position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. cut its position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 83.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,526 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,294 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $612,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 32.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 32,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,359,000 after acquiring an additional 7,862 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Ferguson by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 778,737 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,247,000 after acquiring an additional 52,776 shares during the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ferguson during the fourth quarter worth $587,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the third quarter valued at $970,000. Finally, Clean Yield Group grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 27.1% in the fourth quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 25,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,506,000 after buying an additional 5,534 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ferguson Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of Ferguson stock opened at $162.27 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market cap of $32.45 billion, a PE ratio of 19.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28. The business’s fifty day moving average is $175.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $188.65. Ferguson plc has a fifty-two week low of $152.52 and a fifty-two week high of $225.63.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.06). Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.74 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on FERG. Bank of America raised Ferguson from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $185.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Ferguson from $211.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Zelman & Associates cut Ferguson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Ferguson in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $204.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $200.67.

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.