Invesco Ltd. Purchases 827,355 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Ferguson plc by 13.8% during the first quarter, acquiring an additional 827,355 shares, which brings their total ownership to approximately 3.41% of the company valued at $1.09 billion.
• Multiple hedge funds are actively increasing their positions in Ferguson, with Vanguard growing its holdings by 4.4% and Bank of New York Mellon seeing a 24.5% increase in shares owned.
• Wall Street analysts are optimistic about Ferguson, with several firms raising their price targets significantly; Barclays now has a target of $247.00, reflecting a strong consensus of a "Moderate Buy" rating.

Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 13.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,818,800 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 827,355 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. owned about 3.41% of Ferguson worth $1,092,576,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Ferguson by 4.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,168,743 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,071,408,000 after purchasing an additional 806,718 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings 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 valued at $1,227,410,000 after purchasing an additional 1,506,024 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Ferguson by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,935,419 shares of the company's stock valued at $856,746,000 after purchasing an additional 62,887 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its holdings 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 valued at $582,452,000 after purchasing an additional 831,112 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Ferguson by 15.9% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,989,999 shares of the company's stock valued at $479,088,000 after purchasing an additional 411,088 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ferguson Stock Performance

Ferguson stock traded down $1.46 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $228.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,198,987 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,724,212. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $146.00 and a 12-month high of $230.38. The company has a market capitalization of $45.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.42, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.68. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $220.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $189.07.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 3rd. The company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.06 by $0.44. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.32 earnings per share. Ferguson's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 20th were issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 20th. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FERG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $220.00 price objective (up from $195.00) on shares of Ferguson in a report on Monday, June 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $189.00 to $231.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $190.00 to $247.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $173.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ferguson currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $220.64.

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.