Values First Advisors Inc. Sells 147 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Values First Advisors Inc. reduced its position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 7.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,945 shares of the company’s stock after selling 147 shares during the quarter. Values First Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $338,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new stake in Ferguson during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,523,000. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Ferguson by 303.7% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $904,000 after purchasing an additional 3,423 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 55.0% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,470,000 after purchasing an additional 2,628 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in Ferguson by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 3,357 shares of the company’s stock worth $667,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on FERG. Bank of America upgraded Ferguson from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $185.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Berenberg Bank increased their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $219.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on shares of Ferguson from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $204.00 price objective for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $217.73.

Ferguson Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Ferguson stock opened at $180.92 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $36.17 billion, a PE ratio of 19.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.24. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $181.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $195.48. Ferguson plc has a 1 year low of $167.27 and a 1 year high of $225.63. 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 Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 20th were paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. This is a boost from Ferguson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 20th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.86%.

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.