Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Has $9.06 Million Stock Holdings in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 52.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 52,210 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,072 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $9,062,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Ferguson by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 23,834 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,137,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 33.8% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 364 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 3,496 shares of the company’s stock worth $610,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Commerce Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 2,666 shares of the company’s stock valued at $529,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 41.1% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Ferguson from $234.00 to $211.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America raised shares of Ferguson from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $185.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Zelman & Associates downgraded Ferguson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Ferguson in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $204.00 price objective for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ferguson presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $217.73.

Ferguson Stock Performance

FERG opened at $157.54 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $176.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $191.11. Ferguson plc has a 52-week low of $154.09 and a 52-week high of $225.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.50 billion, a PE ratio of 18.91, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $6.76 billion. Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 5.68%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.74 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.