VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Purchases 6,500 Shares of Ferguson plc $FERG

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al raised its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 19.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 39,800 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,500 shares during the quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $8,861,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of FERG. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in Ferguson during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 178.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 154.4% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 145 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on FERG. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $271.00 to $281.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $220.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $295.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ferguson presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $269.73.

Ferguson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FERG opened at $233.68 on Thursday. Ferguson plc has a fifty-two week low of $174.99 and a fifty-two week high of $271.64. The stock has a market cap of $45.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.17, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.88. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $241.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $243.98.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.14. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.98% and a return on equity of 38.92%. The business had revenue of $7.47 billion for the quarter. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.50 EPS. Ferguson’s revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 11.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, May 5th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $0.89 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.40%.

Ferguson Profile

Ferguson (NYSE: FERG) is a multinational distributor specializing in plumbing and heating products and related building supplies, serving professional contractors, builders and industrial customers. The company supplies a broad range of products used in residential, commercial and infrastructure projects, including pipes and fittings, valves and controls, HVAC equipment, waterworks materials, plumbing fixtures, pumps and accessories, as well as complementary electrical and specialty product lines.

Ferguson operates a network of branches and distribution centers that provide inventory, logistics and value-added services to trade customers.