Brown Advisory Inc. Sells 3,617 Shares of Ferguson plc $FERG

Brown Advisory Inc. decreased its position in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 0.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,504,453 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,617 shares during the quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. owned 1.28% of Ferguson worth $557,566,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Atria Investments Inc grew its holdings in Ferguson by 38.2% during the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 15,401 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,459,000 after acquiring an additional 4,259 shares during the last quarter. Kinetic Partners Management LP grew its holdings in Ferguson by 53.4% during the 3rd quarter. Kinetic Partners Management LP now owns 349,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $78,378,000 after acquiring an additional 121,500 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. grew its holdings in Ferguson by 79.6% during the 3rd quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 12,328 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,769,000 after acquiring an additional 5,463 shares during the last quarter. Marsico Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Ferguson during the 4th quarter worth about $11,017,000. Finally, Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC grew its holdings in Ferguson by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC now owns 74,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,821,000 after acquiring an additional 2,208 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FERG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $300.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $295.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ferguson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $277.77.

Ferguson Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:FERG opened at $230.13 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $44.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.15. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $240.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $241.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Ferguson plc has a fifty-two week low of $207.64 and a fifty-two week high of $271.64.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $7.47 billion for the quarter. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.98% and a return on equity of 38.81%. The business’s revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.50 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 11.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $0.89 dividend. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.40%.

Ferguson announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 5th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Ferguson Company Profile

Ferguson (NYSE: FERG) is a multinational distributor specializing in plumbing and heating products and related building supplies, serving professional contractors, builders and industrial customers. The company supplies a broad range of products used in residential, commercial and infrastructure projects, including pipes and fittings, valves and controls, HVAC equipment, waterworks materials, plumbing fixtures, pumps and accessories, as well as complementary electrical and specialty product lines.

Ferguson operates a network of branches and distribution centers that provide inventory, logistics and value-added services to trade customers.