Boston Partners Sells 471,353 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Boston Partners trimmed its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 46.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 547,765 shares of the company’s stock after selling 471,353 shares during the quarter. Boston Partners’ holdings in Ferguson were worth $95,091,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Ferguson by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 23,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,137,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC increased its position in Ferguson by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 3,496 shares of the company’s stock worth $610,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the period. Commerce Bank increased its position in Ferguson by 3.8% during the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 2,666 shares of the company’s stock worth $529,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in Ferguson by 41.1% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC increased its position in Ferguson by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 3,001 shares of the company’s stock worth $521,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Up 0.0 %

NASDAQ:FERG opened at $162.62 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $175.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $189.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Ferguson plc has a one year low of $152.52 and a one year high of $225.63. The company has a market cap of $32.52 billion, a PE ratio of 19.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted 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 business had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.74 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. Ferguson’s payout ratio is 40.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on FERG. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Ferguson from $205.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Ferguson and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Ferguson from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Zelman & Associates downgraded shares of Ferguson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $201.64.

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.