Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) Position Raised by Teca Partners LP

Teca Partners LP lifted its position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 288.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 99,099 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 73,576 shares during the period. Ferguson accounts for approximately 11.0% of Teca Partners LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Teca Partners LP’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $17,201,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ferguson by 32.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 32,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,359,000 after acquiring an additional 7,862 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Ferguson by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 778,737 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,247,000 after purchasing an additional 52,776 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $587,000. Clean Yield Group raised its stake in shares of Ferguson by 27.1% during the 4th quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 25,959 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,506,000 after buying an additional 5,534 shares during the period. Finally, Markel Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 25.4% during the 4th quarter. Markel Group Inc. now owns 106,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,398,000 after buying an additional 21,500 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FERG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 target price on shares of Ferguson and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $193.00 price target (down from $230.00) on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Bank of America upgraded Ferguson from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $225.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Zelman & Associates downgraded Ferguson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.38.

Ferguson Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FERG opened at $162.67 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $167.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $183.78. Ferguson plc has a 1-year low of $146.00 and a 1-year high of $225.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.53, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.17.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.76 billion. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.74 EPS. Analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 9.4 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.84%.

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.