WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) Hits New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $288.76 and last traded at $288.76, with a volume of 15593 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $285.92.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on WDFC. DA Davidson upped their price objective on WD-40 from $303.00 to $322.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of WD-40 from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th.

WD-40 Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The business’s 50 day moving average is $262.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $246.61. The firm has a market cap of $3.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.10 and a beta of -0.08.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.11). WD-40 had a net margin of 11.79% and a return on equity of 31.53%. The business had revenue of $156.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $149.20 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.21 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that WD-40 will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current year.

WD-40 Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 18th were given a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. WD-40’s dividend payout ratio is 68.88%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William B. Noble sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.98, for a total value of $205,584.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,999 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,312,563.02. This trade represents a 8.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of WD-40

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in WD-40 during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale purchased a new stake in WD-40 in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in WD-40 during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in WD-40 by 57.7% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 216 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. bought a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the 2nd quarter worth $67,000. 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.