Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.12, Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.01 billion. Ferguson had a net margin of 6.33% and a return on equity of 36.89%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.77 EPS.

Ferguson Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:FERG opened at $205.52 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $204.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $206.95. Ferguson has a one year low of $147.62 and a one year high of $225.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.50 billion, a PE ratio of 22.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.13 and a beta of 1.21.

Ferguson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, September 27th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 27th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is 34.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FERG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Ferguson from $211.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Ferguson from $229.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ferguson from $228.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $250.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Ferguson from $222.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ferguson has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.57.

Ferguson announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, June 4th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.