Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. Has $346.28 Million Holdings in Ferguson plc $FERG

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 28.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,541,877 shares of the company’s stock after selling 620,941 shares during the period. Ferguson accounts for 1.6% of Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $346,275,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Ferguson during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $395,401,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ferguson by 39.3% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,255,661 shares of the company’s stock valued at $926,830,000 after acquiring an additional 1,201,493 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the 2nd quarter valued at $130,650,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its position in Ferguson by 89.5% during the 2nd quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 759,687 shares of the company’s stock worth $165,422,000 after acquiring an additional 358,853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, C WorldWide Group Holding A S increased its holdings in Ferguson by 108.8% in the 3rd quarter. C WorldWide Group Holding A S now owns 535,363 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,232,000 after purchasing an additional 278,971 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Ferguson News

Here are the key news stories impacting Ferguson this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Celebrity interviews and human-interest items about Rebecca Ferguson — entertainment coverage with no connection to Ferguson plc; negligible impact on the stock. Rebecca Ferguson opens up
• Neutral Sentiment: Reporting on Rebecca Ferguson describing an on-set incident — celebrity press, no corporate relevance to FERG. Rebecca Ferguson on on-set incident
• Neutral Sentiment: Local reporting that the city of Ferguson is seeing a downward trend in crime — municipal news, not related to the UK/US industrial distributor Ferguson plc. Ferguson facing downward trend in crime
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple tabloid/coverage items concerning Sarah Ferguson and recent Epstein-file revelations — these stories could generate short-term name-recognition noise or media confusion for investors seeing the “Ferguson” name, but they do not relate to Ferguson plc’s operations, earnings or financial outlook. Expect negligible fundamental impact unless headlines cause measurable brand confusion in investor communications. PR expert says this move would be “career suicide” Sarah Ferguson has a ‘housing crisis’ Sarah Ferguson Done Protecting Ex-Prince Andrew Key revelations about Sarah Ferguson in Epstein files

Ferguson Price Performance

FERG stock opened at $262.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company’s 50-day moving average is $239.73 and its 200-day moving average is $236.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.38 billion, a PE ratio of 26.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.18. Ferguson plc has a 1 year low of $146.00 and a 1 year high of $263.34.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, December 9th. The company reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.07. Ferguson had a return on equity of 35.73% and a net margin of 6.28%.The company had revenue of $8.17 billion for the quarter. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.45 earnings per share. Ferguson’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Ferguson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be paid a $0.89 dividend. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. This is a boost from Ferguson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on FERG shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Ferguson from $262.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Ferguson from $268.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $253.00.

Ferguson Company Profile

Ferguson (NYSE: FERG) is a multinational distributor specializing in plumbing and heating products and related building supplies, serving professional contractors, builders and industrial customers. The company supplies a broad range of products used in residential, commercial and infrastructure projects, including pipes and fittings, valves and controls, HVAC equipment, waterworks materials, plumbing fixtures, pumps and accessories, as well as complementary electrical and specialty product lines.

Ferguson operates a network of branches and distribution centers that provide inventory, logistics and value-added services to trade customers.