Geneos Wealth Management Inc. Takes Position in Ferguson plc $FERG

Geneos Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,288 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $534,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of FERG. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Ferguson by 150.8% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,366,465 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,085,256,000 after purchasing an additional 5,631,554 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $498,005,000. Durable Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson during the third quarter worth approximately $244,561,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its holdings in Ferguson by 588.1% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,087,523 shares of the company’s stock worth $244,236,000 after buying an additional 929,475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Ferguson by 502.8% in the 3rd quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 765,725 shares of the company’s stock worth $171,967,000 after buying an additional 638,692 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FERG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Zelman & Associates upgraded Ferguson from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $285.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays raised their price target on Ferguson from $295.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $271.00 to $281.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Ferguson from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $315.00 to $265.00 in a report on Monday, July 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ferguson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.21.

Ferguson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FERG opened at $229.04 on Tuesday. Ferguson plc has a twelve month low of $207.64 and a twelve month high of $271.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market capitalization of $44.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.63, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.13. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $230.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $240.41.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.14. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.98% and a return on equity of 38.81%. The company had revenue of $7.47 billion during the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.50 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 11.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a $0.89 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is 41.40%.

Ferguson announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 5th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Ferguson

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.