State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Boosts Holdings in Ferguson plc $FERG

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D raised its position in shares of Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) by 3.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 68,630 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,111 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $15,413,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in Ferguson by 178.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 145.3% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Ferguson during the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 61.3% in the second quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 242 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Finally, AdvisorShares Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the second quarter worth approximately $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Friday, January 9th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Ferguson from $268.00 to $289.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $220.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Ferguson from $267.00 to $278.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Ferguson in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ferguson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $253.00.

Ferguson Price Performance

Shares of FERG stock opened at $261.34 on Tuesday. Ferguson plc has a twelve month low of $146.00 and a twelve month high of $271.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $241.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $238.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.17.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 9th. The company reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.77 by $0.07. Ferguson had a return on equity of 35.73% and a net margin of 6.28%.The firm had revenue of $8.17 billion during the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.45 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Ferguson Increases Dividend

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

Ferguson 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.