Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Buys Shares of 1,249 Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board bought a new position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 1,249 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $248,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 1.8% during the third quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 3,307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $657,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Transatlantique Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 3.0% in the second quarter. Transatlantique Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $394,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Ferguson by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,952 shares of the company’s stock valued at $388,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Ferguson by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $412,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 33.8% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 364 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ferguson Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of Ferguson stock opened at $208.92 on Friday. 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 52 week low of $166.21 and a 52 week high of $225.63. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $200.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $202.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.94 billion, a PE ratio of 24.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.20.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.12. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.85% and a return on equity of 36.53%. The business had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.77 EPS. Ferguson’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th were issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 27th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on FERG shares. Citigroup increased their price objective 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. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Ferguson from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Ferguson from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $233.38.

Insider Activity at Ferguson

In other news, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.96, for a total value of $527,319.04. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,116 shares in the company, valued at $224,271.36. This trade represents a 70.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Richard Winckler sold 1,325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.75, for a total value of $267,318.75. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $201,750. This trade represents a 56.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,313 shares of company stock valued at $2,477,901. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.