William Blair Has Weak Estimate for Ferguson FY2026 Earnings

Ferguson plc (NASDAQ:FERG) – Stock analysts at William Blair decreased their FY2026 EPS estimates for Ferguson in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, December 10th. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now expects that the company will post earnings of $10.80 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $11.71. The consensus estimate for Ferguson’s current full-year earnings is $9.40 per share.

Ferguson (NASDAQ:FERG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 17th. The company reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $7.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.01 billion. Ferguson had a return on equity of 34.85% and a net margin of 5.68%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.77 earnings per share.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer started coverage on Ferguson in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $234.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Ferguson from $203.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Ferguson from $232.00 to $220.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Ferguson from $230.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $219.00 price target on shares of Ferguson in a research note on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ferguson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $231.00.

Ferguson Price Performance

NASDAQ FERG opened at $187.49 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $203.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $202.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Ferguson has a 12-month low of $183.63 and a 12-month high of $225.63.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FERG. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Ferguson by 375.4% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,289,864 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,218,032,000 after buying an additional 4,966,821 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Ferguson by 423.0% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,462,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $290,475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183,143 shares during the period. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Ferguson by 133.3% during the 3rd quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 700,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $138,999,000 after buying an additional 400,000 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in Ferguson by 76.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 867,593 shares of the company’s stock valued at $172,281,000 after acquiring an additional 377,283 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets bought a new stake in shares of Ferguson in the 3rd quarter worth about $63,420,000. Institutional investors own 81.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ferguson

In related news, insider Ian T. Graham sold 5,778 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.27, for a total value of $1,162,938.06. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,938 shares in the company, valued at $1,195,141.26. The trade was a 49.32 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Garland Williams sold 1,118 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.22, for a total value of $224,963.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,882 shares in the company, valued at $378,696.04. This trade represents a 37.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,313 shares of company stock worth $2,477,901. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ferguson Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 20th will be paid a $0.83 dividend. This is an increase from Ferguson’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 20th. Ferguson’s payout ratio is presently 37.94%.

Ferguson Company Profile

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.