Ferguson (NYSE:FERG) released its first-quarter results on Tuesday, reporting earnings that came in below Wall Street forecasts while slightly increasing its full-year outlook. The stock slipped about 1% in London by 12:01 GMT following the announcement.
For the quarter ending October 31, the distributor posted earnings per share of $2.84, missing the analyst consensus of $2.97. Revenue, however, rose 5.1% year over year to $8.2 billion, edging past expectations of $8.09 billion.
Profitability metrics showed improvement, with adjusted operating margin reaching 9.9%, an expansion of 80 basis points. Gross margin also strengthened to 30.7%, up 60 basis points from the same period a year earlier.
CEO Kevin Murphy praised the company’s execution despite the difficult backdrop, saying, “Our associates again delivered strong results, continuing to execute our growth strategy in a challenging market environment. We are particularly pleased with another quarter of double-digit non-residential revenue growth.”
He added that, “We are poised to deliver a strong calendar year 2025 performance and we remain confident in our markets over the medium term.”
Looking ahead to 2025, Ferguson now anticipates roughly 5% net sales growth, revising its earlier forecast of mid-single-digit expansion. The firm expects an adjusted operating margin between 9.4% and 9.6%, tightening its previous 9.2%–9.6% range. Capital expenditures are projected to come in near $350 million, the upper end of its prior estimate.