Ferguson plc $FERG Holdings Boosted by Empowered Funds LLC

Key Points

• Institutional ownership increased: Empowered Funds LLC raised its Ferguson stake by 22% in the first quarter, while several other institutions also added shares. Institutional investors and hedge funds now own 81.98% of the company.
• Analysts remain broadly positive: Multiple firms raised their price targets, with Ferguson receiving a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average target price of $284.86.
• Strong earnings and shareholder returns: Ferguson beat quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $3.39 versus the $3.23 consensus, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.89 per share. The company also has a $2 billion share-repurchase authorization.

Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG - Free Report) by 22.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,435 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,122 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Ferguson were worth $6,633,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in Ferguson by 9.5% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,629 shares of the company's stock valued at $380,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Optiver Holding B.V. grew its stake in Ferguson by 1,332.4% during the 1st quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 17,948 shares of the company's stock worth $4,187,000 after buying an additional 16,695 shares during the last quarter. Groupe la Francaise grew its stake in Ferguson by 12.6% during the 1st quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 17,018 shares of the company's stock worth $3,970,000 after buying an additional 1,902 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in Ferguson by 43.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,029,896 shares of the company's stock worth $240,234,000 after buying an additional 312,756 shares during the period. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new stake in Ferguson in the first quarter worth $7,458,000. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FERG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Ferguson from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $297.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $252.00 to $256.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $280.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $285.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $284.86.

Ferguson Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of FERG stock opened at $244.82 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.73. Ferguson plc has a 1 year low of $207.64 and a 1 year high of $271.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $235.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $240.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.36 billion, a PE ratio of 28.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.14.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.16. Ferguson had a return on equity of 37.24% and a net margin of 6.82%.The company had revenue of $8.75 billion for the quarter. As a group, research analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 11.35 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.89 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.40%.

Ferguson announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, May 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's management 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.

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