Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Trims Stock Position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 53.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,726 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,737 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.'s holdings in Ferguson were worth $1,078,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,007,892 shares of the company's stock worth $1,740,049,000 after acquiring an additional 1,539,889 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 25.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,991,445 shares of the company's stock worth $1,039,935,000 after acquiring an additional 1,231,120 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,935,419 shares of the company's stock worth $856,746,000 after acquiring an additional 62,887 shares in the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 944.4% during the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 3,537,155 shares of the company's stock worth $613,944,000 after acquiring an additional 3,198,477 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,215,657 shares of the company's stock worth $557,082,000 after acquiring an additional 18,036 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on FERG shares. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Ferguson from $189.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $220.00 price objective (up from $195.00) on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Monday, June 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $280.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $173.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 target price on shares of Ferguson and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ferguson has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $221.27.

Ferguson Stock Up 2.1%

NASDAQ:FERG opened at $219.41 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $146.00 and a 12-month high of $225.63. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $186.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $178.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.13.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 3rd. The company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.32 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Friday, June 20th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 20th. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio is 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.

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