Insider Selling: Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) Insider Sells 238 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Ferguson insider Ian Graham sold 238 shares for approximately $53,431 at an average price of $224.50, reducing his position by 2.12% while retaining 10,971 shares. The transaction was conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.
• Ferguson shares recently traded at $231.74, up 1.3%, after the company reported quarterly EPS of $3.39, exceeding the $3.23 consensus estimate. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.89, equivalent to a 1.5% annual yield.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $285.78, while institutional investors own nearly 82% of the stock. Recent insider selling by multiple executives, totaling roughly $6 million, could nevertheless weigh on investor sentiment.

Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG - Get Free Report) insider Ian Graham sold 238 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.50, for a total transaction of $53,431.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 10,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,462,989.50. This represents a 2.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Ferguson Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE FERG traded up $2.98 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $231.74. 348,936 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,679,277. The stock has a market cap of $44.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.23, a P/E/G 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. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $228.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $234.55. Ferguson plc has a one year low of $212.13 and a one year high of $271.64.

Ferguson (NYSE:FERG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter. On average, analysts anticipate that Ferguson plc will post 11.42 EPS for the current year.

Ferguson Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ferguson

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Saudi Central Bank lifted its holdings in Ferguson by 88.5% during the second quarter. Saudi Central Bank now owns 13,607 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,229,000 after purchasing an additional 6,389 shares during the last quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich increased its stake in shares of Ferguson by 2.5% in the second quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich now owns 326,515 shares of the company's stock worth $77,509,000 after purchasing an additional 7,916 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Ferguson in the second quarter worth about $2,183,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in shares of Ferguson by 13.2% in the second quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 96,108 shares of the company's stock worth $22,932,000 after purchasing an additional 11,196 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lmcg Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,806,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.98% of the company's stock.

Key Ferguson News

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on FERG shares. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Ferguson from a "hold" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $285.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Ferguson from $285.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Ferguson from $297.00 to $313.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $310.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Ferguson from $252.00 to $256.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $285.78.

About Ferguson

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.

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