Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) Announces $0.83 Quarterly Dividend

Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, March 12th, Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st will be paid a dividend of 0.83 per share on Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st.

Ferguson has a dividend payout ratio of 29.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Ferguson to earn $10.62 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.16 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 29.8%.

Ferguson Trading Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ FERG traded down $1.05 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $155.94. 1,749,182 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,843,420. Ferguson has a 52 week low of $154.09 and a 52 week high of $225.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $176.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $191.11. The stock has a market cap of $31.18 billion, a PE ratio of 18.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last released its 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 the consensus estimate of $6.76 billion. Ferguson had a net margin of 5.68% and a return on equity of 34.63%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.74 EPS. Analysts forecast that Ferguson will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FERG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Berenberg Bank raised their target price on shares of Ferguson from $224.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Ferguson and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Ferguson from $205.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Bank of America upgraded Ferguson from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $225.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Ferguson from $211.00 to $189.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.64.

Ferguson Company 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.