DGS Capital Management LLC Sells 174 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

DGS Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,243 shares of the company’s stock after selling 174 shares during the period. DGS Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $445,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of FERG. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,468,003 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,668,462,000 after purchasing an additional 288,935 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Ferguson by 375.4% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,289,864 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,218,032,000 after buying an additional 4,966,821 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 3.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,541,079 shares of the company’s stock worth $905,230,000 after acquiring an additional 161,662 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,197,621 shares of the company’s stock worth $633,409,000 after acquiring an additional 25,677 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 6.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,371,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $477,858,000 after acquiring an additional 133,769 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Ferguson from $232.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Berenberg Bank lifted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Ferguson from $245.00 to $234.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $219.00 price objective on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $231.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ferguson

In related news, CAO Richard Winckler sold 1,325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.75, for a total value of $267,318.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $201,750. This represents a 56.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Victoria Morrissey sold 1,468 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.20, for a total transaction of $295,361.60. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,205 shares in the company, valued at $1,047,246. This represents a 22.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,313 shares of company stock valued at $2,477,901. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Price Performance

NASDAQ FERG opened at $187.47 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.06, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.21. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $183.63 and a 1-year high of $225.63. 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $203.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $202.32.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $7.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.01 billion. Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.85% and a net margin of 5.68%. Ferguson’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.77 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Ferguson plc will post 9.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 6th. Investors of record on Friday, December 20th will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.77%. This is a positive change from Ferguson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 20th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is 37.94%.

Ferguson 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.