Vident Advisory LLC Has $14.92 Million Position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Vident Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 1,294.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 85,932 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 79,770 shares during the quarter. Vident Advisory LLC's holdings in Ferguson were worth $14,915,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of FERG. Parnassus Investments LLC raised its position in Ferguson by 944.4% in the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 3,537,155 shares of the company's stock valued at $613,944,000 after buying an additional 3,198,477 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $469,730,000. Barclays PLC increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 1,811,287 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 1,539,889 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $239,539,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company's stock.

Ferguson Price Performance

NASDAQ FERG traded up $0.71 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $179.35. The company had a trading volume of 1,167,724 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,619,800. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Ferguson plc has a twelve month low of $146.00 and a twelve month high of $225.63. The company has a market capitalization of $35.86 billion, a PE ratio of 21.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $166.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $179.29.

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

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 21st were issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 21st. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.85%. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on FERG shares. Citigroup lowered their price target on Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $189.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Ferguson in a research note on Monday, March 17th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Ferguson from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 target price on Ferguson and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ferguson has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $199.38.

About Ferguson

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.