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

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $288.57 and last traded at $285.46, with a volume of 7816 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $274.02.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target 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. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of WD-40 from $303.00 to $322.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th.

WD-40 Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.31 and a beta of -0.08. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $260.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $245.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.70.

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

WD-40 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were paid a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. WD-40’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.88%.

Insider Activity at WD-40

In related news, Director William B. Noble sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.98, for a total value of $205,584.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,999 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,312,563.02. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.65% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WD-40

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Profit Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of WD-40 by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Profit Investment Management LLC now owns 16,067 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,529,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in shares of WD-40 by 41.3% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 226 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of WD-40 by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 3,794 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $833,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of WD-40 by 34.9% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of WD-40 by 28.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 393 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $101,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. 91.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WD-40 Company Profile

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.