Who ever said FTSE 100 companies can't make you spectacular returns?
Certainly no one who has looked at the share price chart for Wolseley would be complaining if they bought in a few years ago. Since a low back in the spring of 2003, when their was a very good reason why shares were weak (Iraq war), investors in companies like Wolseley have been rewarded for the buy and hold investment strategy.
This week Wolseley updated the market on current trading at it's numerous divisions in Europe and North America. The company has been keen to organically and acquisitively expand it's operations in a number of countries, and today announced that 14 acquisitions costing more than £400m had been completed in the last year. Perhaps the only slight concern for investors it that to maintain this aggressive growth strategy, the companies gearing level has risen from 50% to 65% in 12 months. This sort of gearing expansion cannot go on forever, though Wolseley is a company with strong cash flow and a good organic growth track record.