Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich Acquires 7,916 Shares of Ferguson plc $FERG

Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich grew its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 326,515 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,916 shares during the period. Ferguson comprises 1.8% of Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich owned about 0.17% of Ferguson worth $77,509,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of FERG. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Ferguson in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new position in Ferguson during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Compass Financial Management LLC acquired a new position in Ferguson during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 123.4% during the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 143 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Ferguson during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FERG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Ferguson from $280.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Barclays upped their target price on Ferguson from $297.00 to $313.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and set a $261.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Ferguson from $285.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Ferguson from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $315.00 to $265.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ferguson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $285.57.

Ferguson Trading Up 2.4%

NYSE FERG opened at $228.53 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.13. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $235.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $238.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 0.93. Ferguson plc has a one year low of $207.64 and a one year high of $271.64.

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

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Investors of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st. Ferguson’s payout ratio is presently 41.83%.

Insider Transactions at Ferguson

In other Ferguson news, insider Jake Schlicher sold 5,177 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.92, for a total value of $1,195,472.84. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,490 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,191,430.80. This trade represents a 35.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Ferguson

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.