Global Endowment Management LP Acquires New Shares in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Key Points

• Global Endowment Management LP acquired 3,063 shares of Ferguson plc in Q1, valued at approximately $491,000, indicating increased institutional interest in the company.
• Ferguson received positive ratings from several analysts, with Barclays and Wells Fargo raising price targets significantly, reflecting strong growth expectations.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.83 per share, with a 1.4% yield and a 41.40% dividend payout ratio, highlighting its commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Global Endowment Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 3,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $491,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FERG. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Ferguson by 24.5% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,660,299 shares of the company's stock worth $1,227,410,000 after purchasing an additional 1,506,024 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in Ferguson by 94.6% in the first quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,402,527 shares of the company's stock worth $384,957,000 after purchasing an additional 1,167,751 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Ferguson by 1,036.1% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,020,522 shares of the company's stock worth $163,518,000 after purchasing an additional 930,696 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its position in Ferguson by 29.6% in the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 3,635,707 shares of the company's stock worth $582,452,000 after purchasing an additional 831,112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Ferguson by 13.8% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,818,800 shares of the company's stock worth $1,092,576,000 after purchasing an additional 827,355 shares during the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FERG has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays raised their target price on Ferguson from $190.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. UBS Group raised their target price on Ferguson from $173.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Ferguson from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Ferguson from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Ferguson from $189.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $220.64.

Ferguson Stock Up 1.6%

FERG stock opened at $231.71 on Friday. Ferguson plc has a twelve month low of $146.00 and a twelve month high of $232.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market cap of $45.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.82, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.16. The business's 50-day moving average price is $220.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $189.41.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, June 3rd. The company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Ferguson's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.32 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Friday, June 20th were paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. 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 (DPR) is 41.40%.

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.

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