Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Boosts Holdings in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,463 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $2,510,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Parnassus Investments LLC increased its stake in Ferguson by 944.4% in the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 3,537,155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $613,944,000 after purchasing an additional 3,198,477 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in 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 valued at $290,475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183,143 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its stake in Ferguson by 339.9% in the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 1,234,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,320,000 after purchasing an additional 954,092 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Ferguson by 7,632.6% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 677,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,626,000 after purchasing an additional 668,920 shares during the period. Finally, Cantillon Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Ferguson by 24.5% in the fourth quarter. Cantillon Capital Management LLC now owns 2,111,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $366,523,000 after purchasing an additional 415,002 shares during the period. 81.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Down 0.5 %

FERG stock opened at $163.83 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The company has a market cap of $32.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $175.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $189.05. Ferguson plc has a 52 week low of $152.52 and a 52 week high of $225.63.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.76 billion. Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. The business’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.74 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Shareholders 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 yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. Ferguson’s payout ratio is currently 40.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on FERG shares. Berenberg Bank lifted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Ferguson from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Ferguson in a report on Monday, February 3rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $204.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $193.00 target price (down previously from $230.00) on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ferguson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $200.67.

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.