Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) Insider Sells 922 Shares of Stock

Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG) insider Allison Stirrup sold 922 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $225.00, for a total transaction of $207,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 7,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,583,550. The trade was a 11.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Ferguson Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of FERG stock traded up $2.98 on Friday, hitting $231.74. The stock had a trading volume of 348,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,679,277. The business has a 50 day moving average of $228.56 and a 200 day moving average of $234.55. The stock has a market cap of $44.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 0.93. Ferguson plc has a 12-month low of $212.13 and a 12-month high of $271.64.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.16. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 37.24%. The company had revenue of $8.75 billion for the quarter. As a group, analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 11.42 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st were paid a $0.89 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. This represents a $3.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Ferguson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.83%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ferguson

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in Ferguson by 0.5% in the third quarter. Guyasuta Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 83,468 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,582,000 after buying an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ferguson by 38.9% in the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 5,678 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,264,000 after buying an additional 1,590 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the third quarter valued at $4,079,000. Formuepleje A S purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,960,000. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson during the 3rd quarter valued at $864,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Ferguson

Here are the key news stories impacting Ferguson this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ferguson’s prior quarterly results exceeded expectations, with earnings per share of $3.39 versus the $3.23 consensus estimate. Analysts maintain a generally bullish outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $285.78. Ferguson analyst and earnings information
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple executives, including COO William Thees Jr., VP Anthony Camposano, Ian Graham, Jake Schlicher and Kevin Murphy, completed additional sales on October 14–15. The sellers retained substantial holdings, suggesting the transactions may reflect routine portfolio diversification rather than a broad loss of confidence in Ferguson’s business. SEC insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: Recent filings show significant aggregate insider selling, including Kevin Murphy’s sale of 11,259 shares for approximately $2.44 million on October 12 and CFO William Brundage’s sale of 5,986 shares worth about $1.31 million. Additional sales by other executives bring the recent reported total to roughly $6 million, potentially weighing on sentiment. SEC insider sale filing

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Ferguson from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $297.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of Ferguson from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $285.78.

Ferguson Company Profile

Ferguson plc (NYSE: FERG) is a North American distributor of plumbing and heating products, supplying professional customers across the residential, commercial, industrial and infrastructure markets. The company serves contractors, builders, remodelers, municipalities, industrial businesses and other trade professionals through branch locations, distribution centers and digital ordering platforms.

Its product offerings include plumbing supplies and fixtures, heating and cooling equipment, water and wastewater products, fire protection systems, waterworks materials, industrial piping and related maintenance, repair and operating supplies.