Ferguson plc $FERG Stock Position Decreased by APG Asset Management N.V.

Key Points

• APG Asset Management N.V. reduced its stake in Ferguson plc by 1.1%, selling 24,293 shares and maintaining ownership of 2,224,523 shares valued at approximately $330 million.
• Barclays analysts raised their target price for Ferguson from $190.00 to $247.00, indicating a positive outlook with an "overweight" rating alongside similar upgrades by other investment firms.
• Ferguson recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.83 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend of $3.32 and a dividend yield of 1.4%.

APG Asset Management N.V. decreased its holdings in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 1.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,224,523 shares of the company's stock after selling 24,293 shares during the quarter. Ferguson accounts for approximately 1.0% of APG Asset Management N.V.'s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest position. APG Asset Management N.V. owned approximately 1.11% of Ferguson worth $329,972,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 247.4% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 198 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Ferguson by 166.7% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 208 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Ferguson by 56.5% during the first quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 205 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Ferguson by 106.3% during the fourth quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 198 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in Ferguson by 103.6% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 226 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FERG. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Ferguson from $189.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. UBS Group raised their target price on Ferguson from $173.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Barclays increased their price target on Ferguson from $190.00 to $247.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Berenberg Bank reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $220.64.

Ferguson Stock Up 0.6%

Ferguson stock traded up $1.32 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $235.24. The company's stock had a trading volume of 869,742 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,690,729. The firm's 50 day moving average is $223.54 and its 200 day moving average is $191.94. The company has a market cap of $46.38 billion, a PE ratio of 28.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Ferguson plc has a 52-week low of $146.00 and a 52-week high of $238.16.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 3rd. The company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.44. Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.32 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Friday, June 20th were paid a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 20th. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.40%.

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.