Tpg Gp A LLC Buys Shares of 571,196 Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Tpg Gp A LLC bought a new stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 571,196 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $99,142,000. Ferguson makes up about 1.6% of Tpg Gp A LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Tpg Gp A LLC owned about 0.29% of Ferguson at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 944.4% during the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 3,537,155 shares of the company's stock worth $613,944,000 after acquiring an additional 3,198,477 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 4th quarter worth about $469,730,000. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 208.8% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,678,880 shares of the company's stock worth $464,973,000 after acquiring an additional 1,811,287 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,007,892 shares of the company's stock worth $1,740,049,000 after acquiring an additional 1,539,889 shares during the period. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 4th quarter worth about $239,539,000. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:FERG opened at $184.54 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Ferguson plc has a 52-week low of $146.00 and a 52-week high of $225.63. The company has a 50 day moving average of $165.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $179.38. The company has a market capitalization of $36.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.14.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.06). Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The firm had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.76 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.74 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st were given a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.80%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 21st. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FERG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Ferguson in a report on Monday, March 17th. They set a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $189.00 price objective on shares of Ferguson in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $204.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "hold" rating and a $174.00 target price for the company. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.38.

Ferguson 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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