Trillium Asset Management LLC Sells 17,178 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Trillium Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 26.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,405 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,178 shares during the quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Ferguson were worth $7,631,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FERG. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ferguson in the first quarter worth about $41,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its holdings in Ferguson by 90.7% in the 2nd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 204 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. SouthState Corp bought a new position in Ferguson in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Heritage Wealth Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Milestone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the first quarter worth $38,000.

Insider Transactions at Ferguson

In other Ferguson news, VP Michael Jacobs sold 5,057 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.71, for a total transaction of $832,938.47. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 499 shares in the company, valued at $82,190.29. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, VP Michael Jacobs sold 5,057 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.71, for a total value of $832,938.47. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 499 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $82,190.29. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider William T. Thees, Jr. sold 204 shares of Ferguson stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $164.94, for a total transaction of $33,647.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 25,428 shares in the company, valued at $4,194,094.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 27,703 shares of company stock valued at $4,563,008. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, October 17th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. Bank of America lowered Ferguson from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 31st. Raymond James assumed coverage on Ferguson in a report on Friday, September 1st. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Wednesday, October 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $4,142.63.

Ferguson Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of FERG stock traded up $0.49 on Thursday, reaching $164.25. 112,370 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,265,561. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $158.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $154.90. The stock has a market cap of $33.50 billion, a PE ratio of 17.96, a P/E/G ratio of 13.04 and a beta of 1.15. Ferguson plc has a one year low of $111.85 and a one year high of $171.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 26th. The company reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $7.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.56 billion. Ferguson had a return on equity of 41.58% and a net margin of 6.35%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.85 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 9.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 6th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 5th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.89%.

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.