Truist Financial Corp Sells 89,380 Shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG)

Truist Financial Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) by 7.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,171,708 shares of the company’s stock after selling 89,380 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp owned approximately 0.58% of Ferguson worth $226,222,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FERG. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the fourth quarter valued at $1,506,000. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,676 shares of the company’s stock worth $903,000 after acquiring an additional 390 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ferguson by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 5,651 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,091,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Cumberland Partners Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Ferguson by 16.2% during the fourth quarter. Cumberland Partners Ltd now owns 27,765 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,361,000 after purchasing an additional 3,865 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in Ferguson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $341,000. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Ferguson Stock Performance

Shares of FERG stock traded up $0.50 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $213.33. 944,431 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,137,418. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.27 billion, a PE ratio of 24.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.74 and a beta of 1.27. Ferguson plc has a 12 month low of $134.55 and a 12 month high of $224.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $212.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $189.42.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The company reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.82 by ($0.08). Ferguson had a net margin of 6.00% and a return on equity of 37.99%. The company had revenue of $6.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.72 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.91 earnings per share. Ferguson’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Ferguson plc will post 9.66 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio is 36.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Ferguson from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Raymond James cut Ferguson from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $166.50.

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.