Robert W. Baird Cuts Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) Price Target to $225.00

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by stock analysts at Robert W. Baird from $230.00 to $225.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird's price objective indicates a potential upside of 16.17% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Ferguson from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $234.00 price objective for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ferguson has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $232.22.

Ferguson Price Performance

NASDAQ:FERG traded down $1.25 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $193.69. 3,081,229 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,309,352. The firm has a market cap of $38.88 billion, a PE ratio of 22.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.21. Ferguson has a twelve month low of $180.98 and a twelve month high of $225.63. The stock's 50-day moving average is $203.96 and its 200-day moving average is $202.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.12. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.85% and a return on equity of 36.53%. The company had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.77 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ferguson will post 9.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ferguson

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, SVP Garland Williams sold 1,118 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.22, for a total transaction of $224,963.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,882 shares in the company, valued at $378,696.04. The trade was a 37.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,313 shares of company stock worth $2,477,901 in the last ninety days. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ferguson

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 303.7% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,550 shares of the company's stock valued at $904,000 after acquiring an additional 3,423 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP raised its stake in Ferguson by 66.2% in the third quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 51,647 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,256,000 after purchasing an additional 20,580 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in Ferguson by 380.6% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 159,411 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,309,000 after buying an additional 126,242 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the third quarter worth $2,528,000. Finally, Eagle Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Ferguson by 79.6% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 646,954 shares of the company's stock valued at $134,217,000 after purchasing an additional 286,691 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.