Nuveen Asset Management LLC Lowers Position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 6.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,148,622 shares of the company's stock after selling 83,690 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 0.57% of Ferguson worth $199,614,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FERG. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 76.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 867,593 shares of the company's stock valued at $172,281,000 after purchasing an additional 377,283 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 5,524 shares of the company's stock worth $959,000 after acquiring an additional 804 shares in the last quarter. Steph & Co. purchased a new stake in Ferguson in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $219,000. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $283,000. Finally, Canoe Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 487.3% in the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 1,204 shares of the company's stock valued at $209,000 after buying an additional 999 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Down 0.7%

FERG stock traded down $1.35 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $183.34. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,191,681 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,617,186. 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 company's fifty day moving average price is $165.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $179.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.01, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.14. Ferguson plc has a twelve month low of $146.00 and a twelve month high of $225.63.

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

Ferguson Announces Dividend

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 of this dividend was Friday, March 21st. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on FERG. Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 target price on shares of Ferguson and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $174.00 price objective on the stock. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Ferguson in a research note on Monday, March 17th. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Ferguson from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus 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.