Citigroup Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) Stock Price

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) had its price target decreased by research analysts at Citigroup from $189.00 to $168.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. Citigroup’s price target indicates a potential upside of 7.73% from the stock’s previous close.

FERG has been the subject of several other research reports. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $204.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 price target on Ferguson and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Zelman & Associates lowered Ferguson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Ferguson from $234.00 to $189.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Ferguson from $211.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.64.

Ferguson Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of FERG traded down $1.04 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $155.94. The stock had a trading volume of 1,072,870 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,832,965. 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 firm has a market cap of $31.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28. Ferguson has a fifty-two week low of $154.09 and a fifty-two week high of $225.63. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $176.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $191.11.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.76 billion. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.74 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ferguson will post 9.4 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Ferguson

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FERG. Parnassus Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Ferguson by 944.4% during the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 3,537,155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $613,944,000 after acquiring an additional 3,198,477 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the fourth quarter worth about $469,730,000. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Ferguson by 208.8% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,678,880 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,973,000 after purchasing an additional 1,811,287 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,007,892 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,740,049,000 after purchasing an additional 1,539,889 shares during the period. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group bought a new stake in Ferguson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $239,539,000. 81.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.