Moore Capital Management LP Invests $37.79 Million in Ferguson plc $FERG

Moore Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 169,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,793,000. Ferguson comprises about 0.5% of Moore Capital Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest position.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Ferguson by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,418,334 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,323,104,000 after buying an additional 102,850 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in Ferguson by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 5,981,791 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,331,621,000 after buying an additional 434,650 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Ferguson by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,516,764 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,005,567,000 after buying an additional 79,296 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Ferguson by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,393,603 shares of the company’s stock valued at $977,959,000 after buying an additional 25,785 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Ferguson by 22.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,734,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $838,786,000 after buying an additional 682,666 shares during the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of Ferguson stock opened at $230.14 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $240.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $240.70. The company has a market cap of $44.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.76, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.15. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $207.64 and a 12-month high of $271.64.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $7.47 billion for the quarter. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.98% and a return on equity of 38.81%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.50 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 11.26 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is presently 41.40%.

Ferguson declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, May 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 3.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on FERG. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $260.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $260.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Ferguson from $220.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Ferguson from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $277.58.

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.