Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH Raises Stock Holdings in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH raised its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 108.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,716 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,415 shares during the period. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH's holdings in Ferguson were worth $435,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 906.7% in the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 151 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC increased its position in Ferguson by 166.7% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 208 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. LGT Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 106.3% during the 4th quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 198 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in Ferguson by 92.5% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 258 shares of the company's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 259.3% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 291 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $220.00 target price (up from $195.00) on shares of Ferguson in a report on Monday, June 9th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Ferguson in a report on Monday, March 17th. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Ferguson from $173.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 price objective on Ferguson and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $217.07.

Ferguson Price Performance

Shares of Ferguson stock traded up $1.21 on Monday, reaching $214.06. The stock had a trading volume of 522,022 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,652,326. 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 1 year low of $146.00 and a 1 year high of $225.63. The company has a market cap of $42.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.13. The business's 50 day moving average is $179.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.90.

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, beating 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%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.32 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Friday, June 20th will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date is 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.