WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) Shares Gap Up After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $219.75, but opened at $248.00. WD-40 shares last traded at $225.81, with a volume of 172,200 shares changing hands.

The specialty chemicals company reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.07. WD-40 had a net margin of 12.07% and a return on equity of 32.43%. The business had revenue of $155.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $145.80 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis.

WD-40 Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 31st. Investors of record on Friday, July 19th will be given a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 19th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. WD-40’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.16%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, DA Davidson cut their price objective on shares of WD-40 from $313.00 to $303.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday.

Insider Transactions at WD-40

In related news, CFO Sara Kathleen Hyzer acquired 213 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were bought at an average price of $232.83 per share, for a total transaction of $49,592.79. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,676 shares in the company, valued at approximately $623,053.08. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other WD-40 news, CFO Sara Kathleen Hyzer acquired 213 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $232.83 per share, for a total transaction of $49,592.79. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,676 shares in the company, valued at $623,053.08. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Steven A. Brass acquired 432 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 16th. The shares were bought at an average price of $232.22 per share, with a total value of $100,319.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 20,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,771,424.34. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Profit Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its position in shares of WD-40 by 41.2% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 463 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $102,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale purchased a new stake in shares of WD-40 during the first quarter worth about $34,000. Sweeney & Michel LLC purchased a new stake in WD-40 during the 1st quarter valued at about $246,000. Finally, Bayesian Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $704,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.52% of the company’s stock.

WD-40 Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.27, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $226.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $243.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.13 and a beta of -0.07.

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.