XTX Topco Ltd Sells 26,091 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

XTX Topco Ltd trimmed its stake in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 91.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,538 shares of the company's stock after selling 26,091 shares during the quarter. XTX Topco Ltd's holdings in Ferguson were worth $441,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FERG. Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 906.7% during the 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 151 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ferguson in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Ferguson in the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in Ferguson by 92.5% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 258 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 41.1% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 333 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FERG. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Ferguson from $234.00 to $189.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Ferguson from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $225.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. Zelman & Associates lowered shares of Ferguson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "hold" rating and a $174.00 price target for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $199.38.

Ferguson Stock Performance

NASDAQ FERG traded up $0.21 during trading on Friday, hitting $169.73. 1,471,321 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,582,407. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.38, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.68. The business has a 50 day moving average of $164.79 and a 200-day moving average of $182.07. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $146.00 and a 12-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 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.06). Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.74 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.96%. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio is currently 40.84%.

Ferguson Company 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.