Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Decreases Position in Ferguson plc $FERG

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG - Free Report) by 4.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 443,404 shares of the company's stock after selling 22,488 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.23% of Ferguson worth $103,428,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FERG. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 3,979 shares of the company's stock worth $886,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 3,132 shares of the company's stock valued at $697,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the company's stock valued at $375,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in Ferguson by 7.5% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 690 shares of the company's stock worth $150,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Ferguson by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 431 shares of the company's stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on FERG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $271.00 to $281.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Ferguson from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Ferguson from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Barclays raised their price target on Ferguson from $295.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Ferguson from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $276.61.

Ferguson Stock Performance

FERG traded up $3.23 during trading on Friday, hitting $227.85. The stock had a trading volume of 1,257,084 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,203,090. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.49, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.13. The company's 50-day moving average price is $232.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $240.17. Ferguson plc has a twelve month low of $207.64 and a twelve month high of $271.64.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $7.47 billion during the quarter. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.98% and a return on equity of 38.81%. The firm's revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.50 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 11.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $0.89 dividend. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. Ferguson's payout ratio is currently 41.40%.

Ferguson declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, May 5th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Ferguson Profile

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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