Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) Holdings Cut by Mawer Investment Management Ltd.

Key Points

• Mawer Investment Management Ltd. reduced its stake in Ferguson plc by 7% during the 1st quarter, selling 74,892 shares and retaining about 0.50% of the company.
• Research firms have issued positive ratings for Ferguson, with Barclays raising the price target from $190 to $247 and Morgan Stanley setting a target of $220.
• Ferguson recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.83 per share, yielding 1.47%, demonstrating a healthy dividend payout ratio of 41.40%.

Mawer Investment Management Ltd. trimmed its position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 7.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 996,683 shares of the company's stock after selling 74,892 shares during the quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. owned 0.50% of Ferguson worth $159,699,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FERG. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 208.8% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,678,880 shares of the company's stock worth $464,973,000 after buying an additional 1,811,287 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,007,892 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,740,049,000 after acquiring an additional 1,539,889 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,506,024 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 25.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,991,445 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,039,935,000 after acquiring an additional 1,231,120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 94.6% in the first quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 2,402,527 shares of the company's stock valued at $384,957,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167,751 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Down 0.8%

NASDAQ FERG traded down $1.81 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $221.52. The company had a trading volume of 727,902 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,763,466. Ferguson plc has a fifty-two week low of $146.00 and a fifty-two week high of $228.80. The company has a market capitalization of $43.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm's 50 day moving average is $213.77 and its 200 day moving average is $185.94.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 3rd. The company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.06 by $0.44. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.32 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on FERG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Ferguson from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Ferguson from $190.00 to $247.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on Ferguson from $189.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They set a "buy" rating and a $280.00 target price for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.