Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) Shares Bought by Mawer Investment Management Ltd.

Mawer Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 2,384.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,071,575 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,028,440 shares during the period. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.54% of Ferguson worth $185,993,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in Ferguson by 176.6% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 10,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,015,000 after acquiring an additional 6,479 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the 3rd quarter worth about $45,000. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its position in Ferguson by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 3,409 shares of the company’s stock worth $677,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP purchased a new position in Ferguson in the third quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Ferguson by 423.0% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,462,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $290,475,000 after buying an additional 1,183,143 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FERG opened at $160.63 on Friday. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $152.52 and a 12-month high of $225.63. 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 $32.12 billion, a PE ratio of 19.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $173.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $187.70.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.76 billion. Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.74 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FERG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $234.00 to $189.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Ferguson from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Ferguson from $189.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Ferguson in a report on Monday, March 17th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Berenberg Bank upped their price target on Ferguson from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.67.

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.