Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) Rating Increased to Buy at Bank of America

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Bank of America from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has a $225.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $185.00. Bank of America's price target points to a potential upside of 30.71% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on FERG. Citigroup cut their price objective on Ferguson from $221.00 to $189.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Ferguson from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Berenberg Bank lifted their price target on Ferguson from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $220.00 to $215.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $222.40.

Ferguson Price Performance

Shares of FERG traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $172.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,638,672 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,204,034. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $195.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $199.07. Ferguson has a fifty-two week low of $170.93 and a fifty-two week high of $225.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.67, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ferguson news, CAO Richard Winckler sold 1,325 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.75, for a total transaction of $267,318.75. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $201,750. This trade represents a 56.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $200.96, for a total value of $527,319.04. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,116 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $224,271.36. This trade represents a 70.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,313 shares of company stock valued at $2,477,901 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ferguson

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FERG. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 423.0% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,462,836 shares of the company's stock worth $290,475,000 after acquiring an additional 1,183,143 shares during the last quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 133.3% during the 3rd quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 700,000 shares of the company's stock worth $138,999,000 after purchasing an additional 400,000 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Ferguson by 76.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 867,593 shares of the company's stock valued at $172,281,000 after buying an additional 377,283 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new stake in Ferguson during the third quarter worth about $63,420,000. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in Ferguson by 3.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,468,003 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,668,462,000 after acquiring an additional 288,935 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company's stock.

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.