Lord Abbett & CO. LLC Sells 144,160 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Lord Abbett & CO. LLC decreased its stake in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG - Free Report) by 27.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 374,707 shares of the company's stock after selling 144,160 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC owned 0.19% of Ferguson worth $65,038,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in FERG. Manchester Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Ferguson by 906.7% in the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 151 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Berbice Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Ferguson in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Ferguson during the 4th quarter worth $45,000. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 92.5% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 258 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 41.1% in 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 last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FERG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Bank of America raised Ferguson from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $225.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Ferguson in a report on Monday, February 3rd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $204.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Ferguson from $211.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $193.00 price target (down from $230.00) on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $199.38.

Ferguson Price Performance

NASDAQ FERG traded down $0.82 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $169.72. 1,895,081 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,587,018. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $146.00 and a 1-year high of $225.63. The company has a market cap of $33.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $164.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $181.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.68.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.74 EPS. Ferguson's quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Investors 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 dividend yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.