Ferguson (FERG) stock up 5% as firm still flush with profit
By Jenni Reid
09:45, 7 December 2021
Shares in British-American plumbing and heating product supplier Ferguson (FERG) rose on the London Stock Exchange on Tuesday morning as it reported soaring profits.
FERG stock was up nearly 5% to 12,110p in the first hour of trading.
The company grew operating profit 64.2% year-on-year to $739m (£557m) off the back of $6.803bn sales in the quarter to 31 October, the first in its new fiscal year.
A final dividend of 166.5 cents per share will be paid on 10 December.
Supportive markets
The company said sales growth was due to supportive end markets and continued market share gains, while price inflation was managed through cost control.
In the US, it said new residential housing starts and growth in residential repairs and works drove sales.
Meanwhile four acquisitions – including Florida-based waterworks meter distributor and high-end appliance showroom Meyer – contributed $125 million in revenue.
Ferguson benefited from the rise in home improvements due to lockdown measures in the last financial year with underlying profit for the year to 31 July up 31.1% to $2.1bn.
It is $97 million through a $1bn share buyback program it announced in September following those results. Last year it returned $1.4bn through dividends and buybacks.
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Listings vote
Ferguson also confirmed a shareholder vote on a primary listing in the US would take place in spring 2022.
Now a member of London’s FTSE100 index, it made its additional listing on the New York Stock Exchange in May 2021.
At the time, it said it expected that “over time the additional US listing will facilitate increased ownership by domestic US funds.”
Read more: Ferguson profit boosted by home improvement demand
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