Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) Shares Sold by Bank of Montreal Can

Bank of Montreal Can trimmed its stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 18.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 140,966 shares of the company's stock after selling 31,595 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can owned 0.07% of Ferguson worth $24,467,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FMR LLC grew its stake in 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 buying an additional 1,539,889 shares during the last quarter. 2Xideas AG boosted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 49.8% in the 4th quarter. 2Xideas AG now owns 102,542 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,798,000 after acquiring an additional 34,105 shares during the last quarter. Mirabaud Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the fourth quarter worth $1,578,000. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Ferguson during the fourth quarter valued at $11,389,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 402,498 shares of the company's stock valued at $69,862,000 after purchasing an additional 21,473 shares during the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays lowered their target price on Ferguson from $211.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 price target on shares of Ferguson and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $204.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Ferguson from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $185.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $199.38.

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Ferguson Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of Ferguson stock traded down $0.88 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $165.65. The company had a trading volume of 1,551,151 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,560,825. The company's 50-day moving average is $167.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $184.05. Ferguson plc has a twelve month low of $146.00 and a twelve month high of $225.63. 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 has a market cap of $33.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $6.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.74 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.