SG Americas Securities LLC Purchases 14,851 Shares of Ferguson plc $FERG

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC increased its Ferguson stake by 17.6% in the first quarter, buying 14,851 more shares and bringing its total to 99,028 shares worth about $23.1 million.
• Ferguson reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $2.28 per share on revenue of $7.47 billion, while revenue rose 3.6% year over year; analysts now expect full-year EPS of 11.26.
• The company also announced a $2 billion share buyback and a quarterly dividend of $0.89 per share, yielding about 1.5% annually.

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG - Free Report) by 17.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 99,028 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 14,851 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC owned about 0.05% of Ferguson worth $23,099,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ferguson by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,418,334 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,323,104,000 after acquiring an additional 102,850 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Ferguson by 150.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,366,465 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,085,256,000 after purchasing an additional 5,631,554 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Ferguson by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 5,981,791 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,331,621,000 after purchasing an additional 434,650 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Ferguson by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,516,764 shares of the company's stock worth $1,005,567,000 after purchasing an additional 79,296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Ferguson by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,393,603 shares of the company's stock worth $977,959,000 after purchasing an additional 25,785 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FERG. Truist Financial raised their target price on Ferguson from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $255.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Ferguson from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold 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 target price of $277.58.

Ferguson Price Performance

Ferguson stock opened at $236.69 on Thursday. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $239.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $240.20. The stock has a market cap of $45.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.15. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $207.64 and a 12-month high of $271.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.14. Ferguson had a return on equity of 38.81% and a net margin of 6.98%.The firm had revenue of $7.47 billion during the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.50 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 11.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, May 5th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 3.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.89 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Ferguson's payout ratio is currently 41.40%.

About Ferguson

Ferguson NYSE: FERG is a multinational distributor specializing in plumbing and heating products and related building supplies, serving professional contractors, builders and industrial customers. The company supplies a broad range of products used in residential, commercial and infrastructure projects, including pipes and fittings, valves and controls, HVAC equipment, waterworks materials, plumbing fixtures, pumps and accessories, as well as complementary electrical and specialty product lines.

Ferguson operates a network of branches and distribution centers that provide inventory, logistics and value-added services to trade customers.

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