Magnetar Financial LLC Has $4.78 Million Position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Magnetar Financial LLC cut its stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 15.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,535 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,055 shares during the quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $4,779,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Parnassus Investments LLC increased its position in Ferguson by 944.4% in the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 3,537,155 shares of the company’s stock worth $613,944,000 after purchasing an additional 3,198,477 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Ferguson by 423.0% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,462,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,475,000 after buying an additional 1,183,143 shares during the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its position in Ferguson by 339.9% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 1,234,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,320,000 after acquiring an additional 954,092 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Ferguson by 7,632.6% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 677,684 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,626,000 after acquiring an additional 668,920 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cantillon Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ferguson by 24.5% in the fourth quarter. Cantillon Capital Management LLC now owns 2,111,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $366,523,000 after acquiring an additional 415,002 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ferguson Stock Up 1.1 %

FERG opened at $164.72 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $175.33 and a 200-day moving average of $189.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $152.52 and a 1-year high of $225.63.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by ($0.06). Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.76 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.74 earnings per share. Ferguson’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 21st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is 40.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on FERG. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Ferguson from $211.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Bank of America raised Ferguson from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $225.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Ferguson from $205.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $189.00 target price on shares of Ferguson in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Berenberg Bank increased their price target on Ferguson from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.67.

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.