Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) Upgraded at Citigroup

Citigroup upgraded shares of Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $288.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $285.00.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on FERG. Wolfe Research began coverage on Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Ferguson from $280.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Ferguson from $290.00 to $270.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. Melius Research initiated coverage on Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. They set a “hold” rating and a $252.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on Ferguson from $325.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $287.44.

Ferguson Stock Up 4.2%

FERG opened at $240.40 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Ferguson has a 1-year low of $212.13 and a 1-year high of $271.64. The company has a market capitalization of $46.51 billion, a PE ratio of 28.25, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.14. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $225.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $237.33.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.23 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $8.75 billion for the quarter. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 37.24%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ferguson will post 11.42 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Friday, August 21st were paid a dividend of $0.89 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Ferguson’s payout ratio is 41.83%.

Insider Activity at Ferguson

In other Ferguson news, insider Ian T. Graham sold 1,854 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.74, for a total value of $405,543.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 11,511 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,517,916.14. This represents a 13.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO William Brundage sold 5,986 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.74, for a total value of $1,309,377.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 54,908 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,010,575.92. This represents a 9.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 38,808 shares of company stock worth $8,571,587 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Ferguson

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in FERG. Wedbush Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 4.3% in the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 1,197 shares of the company’s stock worth $284,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. L2 Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 1,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $366,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Virtue Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 1,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Natural Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Natural Investments LLC now owns 944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $224,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Company Profile

Ferguson plc (NYSE: FERG) is a value-added distributor of plumbing, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), waterworks, fire protection and other building and industrial products. The company serves professional contractors, municipalities, commercial and industrial businesses, and other customers through a network of branches, distribution centers, showrooms and digital platforms.

Its product offering includes pipes, valves, fittings, plumbing fixtures, water and wastewater infrastructure products, HVAC equipment, fire protection systems, industrial supplies and related tools and services.