Qsemble Capital Management LP Acquires Shares of 17,390 Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Qsemble Capital Management LP bought a new position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 17,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,453,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. CWM LLC lifted its position in Ferguson by 303.7% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $904,000 after acquiring an additional 3,423 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,834,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Ferguson during the first quarter worth $26,379,000. Entropy Technologies LP boosted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 66.2% in the third quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 51,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,256,000 after purchasing an additional 20,580 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in Ferguson by 380.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 159,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,309,000 after purchasing an additional 126,242 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Stock Up 3.4 %

FERG stock opened at $216.04 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $43.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.56, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.20. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $166.21 and a 1-year high of $225.63. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $201.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $202.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.12. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.85% and a return on equity of 36.53%. The business had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.77 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Ferguson plc will post 9.77 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 27th were given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 27th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is 37.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FERG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays boosted their price target on Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Citigroup upped their target price on Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ferguson currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.38.

Insider Activity at Ferguson

In related news, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.96, for a total value of $527,319.04. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,116 shares in the company, valued at $224,271.36. This trade represents a 70.16 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ian T. Graham sold 5,778 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.27, for a total transaction of $1,162,938.06. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,938 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,195,141.26. The trade was a 49.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,313 shares of company stock worth $2,477,901 in the last 90 days. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.