Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) Shares Bought by Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 4.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 46,385 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,878 shares during the quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $8,982,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of FERG. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Ferguson by 10.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,563,558 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,781,000 after buying an additional 153,757 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Ferguson by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 45,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,841,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC lifted its stake in Ferguson by 7.5% during the second quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 6,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,274,000 after purchasing an additional 461 shares during the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC boosted its holdings in Ferguson by 7.9% in the second quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 22,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,431,000 after purchasing an additional 1,682 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Ferguson by 1.9% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 967,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $187,424,000 after purchasing an additional 18,504 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of FERG stock opened at $208.19 on Friday. Ferguson plc has a 1 year low of $147.62 and a 1 year high of $225.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.04 billion, a PE ratio of 22.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.13 and a beta of 1.21. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $204.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $206.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.68.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.01 billion. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.33% and a return on equity of 36.89%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.77 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.63 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 27th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 27th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.54%.

Ferguson announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, June 4th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on FERG shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Ferguson from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Ferguson from $250.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup increased their price target on Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Ferguson from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Ferguson from $238.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $231.57.

Ferguson 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.