Essex Financial Services Inc. Invests $252,000 in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Essex Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $252,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Advocates Investment Management raised its position in shares of Ferguson by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 1,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $320,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Ferguson by 11.3% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 701 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. lifted its stake in Ferguson by 5.2% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 1,644 shares of the company’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 17,308 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,847,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Ferguson by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 520 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Raymond James lowered shares of Ferguson from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $166.50.

Ferguson Price Performance

Shares of FERG opened at $217.17 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $213.09 and its 200 day moving average is $191.02. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $137.12 and a 12-month high of $224.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market cap of $44.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.25, a P/E/G ratio of 9.07 and a beta of 1.27.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 5th. The company reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by ($0.08). Ferguson had a net margin of 6.00% and a return on equity of 37.99%. The business had revenue of $6.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.72 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.91 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 9.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Ferguson’s payout ratio is 36.74%.

About Ferguson

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.