Insider Selling: Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) Insider Sells $47,876.71 in Stock

Key Points

• Ferguson insider Jake Schlicher sold 217 shares for approximately $47,877 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan, reducing his position by 2.31% while retaining 9,180 shares.
• Recent insider filings show roughly $6 million in aggregate executive stock sales, including substantial transactions by Kevin Murphy and CFO William Brundage, though executives continue to hold significant stakes.
• Ferguson shares rose 1.3% to $231.74, while the company’s latest earnings exceeded expectations at $3.39 per share versus $3.23 forecast. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $285.78, and Ferguson pays a $3.56 annualized dividend yielding about 1.5%.

Ferguson plc (NYSE:FERG - Get Free Report) insider Jake Schlicher sold 217 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.63, for a total value of $47,876.71. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 9,180 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,025,383.40. This trade represents a 2.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Jake Schlicher also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, October 15th, Jake Schlicher sold 314 shares of Ferguson stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.50, for a total value of $70,493.00.
• On Monday, October 12th, Jake Schlicher sold 3,138 shares of Ferguson stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.74, for a total value of $686,406.12.
• On Friday, August 28th, Jake Schlicher sold 5,177 shares of Ferguson stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.92, for a total transaction of $1,195,472.84.

Ferguson Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:FERG traded up $2.98 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $231.74. The company had a trading volume of 348,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,679,277. 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's fifty day moving average price is $228.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $234.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.23, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.14. 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 earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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. Equities research analysts expect that Ferguson plc will post 11.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st were issued a dividend of $0.89 per share. This represents a $3.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 21st. Ferguson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.83%.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ferguson

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Compass Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the second quarter worth $32,000. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Ferguson during the second quarter valued at $42,000. Vega Investment Solutions boosted its position in shares of Ferguson by 50.5% in the 2nd quarter. Vega Investment Solutions now owns 277 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in Ferguson by 26.1% during the 3rd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 300 shares of the company's stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in Ferguson by 93.5% during the second quarter. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. now owns 296 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. 81.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on FERG. UBS Group boosted their target price on Ferguson from $252.00 to $256.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Ferguson from $280.00 to $288.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $261.00 price target on shares of Ferguson in a research report on Tuesday, August 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Ferguson from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $315.00 to $265.00 in a report on Monday, July 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.

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