Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Has $40.39 Million Position in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 816.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 203,416 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 181,216 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund owned 0.10% of Ferguson worth $40,392,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 3.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,468,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,668,462,000 after purchasing an additional 288,935 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 375.4% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,289,864 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,218,032,000 after purchasing an additional 4,966,821 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 10.9% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,563,558 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,781,000 after acquiring an additional 153,757 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 5.9% in the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,412,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $280,510,000 after acquiring an additional 79,152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Pacific Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 1.4% in the second quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP now owns 1,104,289 shares of the company’s stock valued at $213,846,000 after acquiring an additional 15,700 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ferguson

In other Ferguson news, CAO Richard Winckler sold 1,325 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.75, for a total transaction of $267,318.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $201,750. The trade was a 56.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Michael Jacobs sold 2,624 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.96, for a total value of $527,319.04. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,116 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $224,271.36. The trade was a 70.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,313 shares of company stock valued at $2,477,901 in the last quarter. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ferguson Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of FERG opened at $213.27 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $201.32 and a 200 day moving average of $202.52. Ferguson plc has a fifty-two week low of $166.21 and a fifty-two week high of $225.63. The firm has a market cap of $42.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.80.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.12. Ferguson had a return on equity of 36.53% and a net margin of 5.85%. The company had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.77 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 9.77 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th were issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 27th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FERG has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $234.00 target price for the company. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Ferguson from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $233.38.

Ferguson 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.