Royal Bank of Canada Raises Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) Price Target to $219.00

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) had its price target upped by Royal Bank of Canada from $211.00 to $219.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Ferguson from $232.00 to $229.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $238.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. One equities research 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 MarketBeat.com, Ferguson currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $231.57.

Ferguson Stock Down 5.6 %

NASDAQ:FERG opened at $196.52 on Wednesday. Ferguson has a 1-year low of $147.62 and a 1-year high of $225.63. The company has a 50-day moving average of $204.88 and a 200 day moving average of $206.95. The firm has a market cap of $39.69 billion, a PE ratio of 21.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.13 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

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

Ferguson declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, June 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 27th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.54%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ferguson

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FERG. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson during the fourth quarter valued at about $732,000. UBS Group AG boosted its position in Ferguson by 104.4% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 213,015 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,127,000 after buying an additional 108,820 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Ferguson by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,989 shares of the company’s stock valued at $384,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in Ferguson by 20.4% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 348,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,306,000 after buying an additional 59,185 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its position in Ferguson by 27.8% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 13,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,523,000 after buying an additional 2,841 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

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.