UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Buys 264,592 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 18.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,727,428 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 264,592 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned approximately 0.86% of Ferguson worth $299,830,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FERG. FMR LLC increased its position in Ferguson by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,007,892 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,740,049,000 after buying an additional 1,539,889 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in Ferguson by 25.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,991,445 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,039,935,000 after buying an additional 1,231,120 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,935,419 shares of the company's stock valued at $856,746,000 after acquiring an additional 62,887 shares in the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 944.4% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 3,537,155 shares of the company's stock valued at $613,944,000 after acquiring an additional 3,198,477 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,215,657 shares of the company's stock valued at $557,082,000 after acquiring an additional 18,036 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company's stock.

Ferguson Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FERG traded down $1.11 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $178.19. The company had a trading volume of 1,551,032 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,626,201. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Ferguson plc has a 52 week low of $146.00 and a 52 week high of $225.63. The firm has a market cap of $35.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.39, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.14. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $167.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $178.77.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.06). Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. The firm had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.74 EPS. The business's revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st were paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 21st. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.86%. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on Ferguson from $234.00 to $189.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Ferguson and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Ferguson from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Monday, March 17th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $199.38.

Ferguson Company Profile

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.