EXECUTING OUR STRATEGY TO DELIVER STRONG OPERATING PERFORMANCE

WOKINGHAM, UK / ACCESSWIRE / September 27, 2022 / Ferguson PLC:

Fourth quarter highlights

• Strong sales growth of 21.4%, with core strengthsdriving market share gains.
• Operating profit growth of 23.1% (21.5% on an adjusted basis) driven by strong sales and operating cost leverage.
• Delivered operating margin of 10.2% (10.7% on an adjusted basis).
• Completed seven acquisitions in the quarter with annualized revenues of approximately $470 million.
• Share repurchases of $627 million during the fourth quarter.

Full year highlights

• Sales growth of 25.3% driven by organic growth and further consolidation of our markets through acquisitions.
• Operating profit growth of 44.6% (adjusted operating profit growth of 41.1%) outpaced net sales growth, resulting in operating margin of 9.9%, up 130 basis points(10.3% on an adjusted basis,up 110 basis points).
• Final dividend increased by 15% to $1.91 per share bringing the total dividend to $2.75 per share, an increase of 15% for the year.
• The Company will move to a quarterly interim dividend schedule in FY2023 with our first expected dividend declaration alongside our Q1 results.
• Invested $650 million in seventeen acquisitions with annualized revenues of approximately $750 million.
• Completed $1.5 billion of our $2.0 billion share repurchase program and extended the program by a further $0.5 billion, expected to complete within the next 12 months.
• Balance sheet remains strong with net debt to adjusted EBITDA of 1.0x, at the bottom of our 1-2x target range.

FY2023 Guidance

• Net sales growth of low single digits driven by market outperformance and completed acquisitions
• Adjusted operating margin of 9.3% to 9.9%
• Interest expense of $170 - $190 million
• Adjusted effective tax rate of approximately 25%
• Capital expenditures of $350 - $400 million

Kevin Murphy, Ferguson CEO, commented 'Our associates delivered another quarter of strong financial performance driven by continued market share gains and our ability to appropriately manage and pass through price inflation. Ongoing cost control ensured a robust profit performance in the quarter as we ran up against tough prior year comparables. For the full year, our teams achieved excellent results despite labor and supply chain challenges. The balance sheet remains strong as we continue to invest for organic growth, consolidate our fragmented markets through acquisitions and return capital to shareholders.

'We are well positioned for the year ahead with diversified end market exposure and a strong balance sheet. The agility of our business model will enable us to navigate macro economic headwinds.

Importantly, we remain confident in the strength of our markets over the longer term and our financial guidance continues to reflect market outperformance, both organically and from acquisitions.'

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SOURCE: Ferguson PLC