Voya Investment Management LLC Sells 23,946 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Voya Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 26.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 66,044 shares of the company's stock after selling 23,946 shares during the quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC's holdings in Ferguson were worth $11,463,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Barclays PLC increased its position in Ferguson by 76.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 867,593 shares of the company's stock worth $172,281,000 after buying an additional 377,283 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Ferguson during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $112,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Ferguson during the third quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 6.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,371,954 shares of the company's stock worth $477,858,000 after purchasing an additional 133,769 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its stake in shares of Ferguson by 9.9% in the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 518,867 shares of the company's stock worth $103,031,000 after purchasing an additional 46,947 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FERG. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $211.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Ferguson from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 price target on Ferguson and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $193.00 price objective (down from $230.00) on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Ferguson in a report on Monday, February 3rd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $204.00 target price on the stock. Five research 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, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $199.38.

Ferguson Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FERG traded up $2.60 during trading on Friday, reaching $172.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,406,105 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,595,017. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.45 billion, a PE ratio of 20.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17. Ferguson plc has a 12 month low of $146.00 and a 12 month high of $225.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $164.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $180.98.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last posted 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). The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.76 billion. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. Ferguson's revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.74 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.84%.

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.