WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) Shares Up 3.3%

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) shares traded up 3.3% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $242.09 and last traded at $240.90. 46,601 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 65% from the average session volume of 133,742 shares. The stock had previously closed at $233.18.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $313.00 target price on shares of WD-40 in a research note on Wednesday.

WD-40 Trading Down 2.2 %

The firm has a market cap of $3.20 billion, a PE ratio of 47.16 and a beta of -0.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $257.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $240.27.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 9th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $139.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $140.51 million. WD-40 had a net margin of 12.19% and a return on equity of 32.30%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.21 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that WD-40 will post 5.22 EPS for the current year.

WD-40 Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. WD-40’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.26%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David Pendarvis purchased 328 shares of WD-40 stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $234.75 per share, with a total value of $76,998.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 4,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,158,256.50. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other WD-40 news, VP Jeffrey G. Lindeman bought 182 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $272.42 per share, with a total value of $49,580.44. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $837,146.66. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Pendarvis bought 328 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $234.75 per share, for a total transaction of $76,998.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,158,256.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the 2nd quarter valued at about $44,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the 4th quarter valued at about $56,000. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the 4th quarter valued at about $60,000. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the 1st quarter valued at about $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.52% of the company’s stock.

About WD-40

WD-40 Company develops and sells maintenance products, and homecare and cleaning products in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company provides multi-purpose maintenance products that include aerosol sprays, non-aerosol trigger sprays, precision pens, and in liquid-bulk form products under the WD-40 Multi-Use brand name; specialty maintenance products, such as penetrants, degreasers, corrosion inhibitors, greases, lubricants, and rust removers under the WD-40 Specialist brand; and bike-specific products.