WD-40 Company $WDFC Shares Purchased by ProShare Advisors LLC

ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in WD-40 Company (NASDAQ:WDFC) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 33,695 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,623 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC owned 0.25% of WD-40 worth $6,635,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of WD-40 by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 3,050 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $601,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of WD-40 by 6.2% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 953 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of WD-40 by 3.1% during the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,865 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $362,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of WD-40 by 4.4% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,317 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank increased its stake in shares of WD-40 by 1.8% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 3,925 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $776,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.52% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on WDFC shares. William Blair started coverage on shares of WD-40 in a research note on Monday, April 6th. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of WD-40 from $300.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $270.00.

WD-40 Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ WDFC opened at $207.30 on Friday. WD-40 Company has a 12-month low of $175.38 and a 12-month high of $253.24. The stock has a market cap of $2.79 billion, a PE ratio of 35.26 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a 50-day moving average of $211.83 and a 200 day moving average of $212.33.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 9th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.11. WD-40 had a net margin of 12.57% and a return on equity of 30.23%. The company had revenue of $161.67 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $154.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.32 EPS. WD-40’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that WD-40 Company will post 5.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WD-40 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 17th were paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 17th. WD-40’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.39%.

WD-40 Company Profile

WD-40 Company, headquartered in San Diego, California, is best known for its flagship WD-40® Multi-Use Product, a water-displacing spray used for lubrication, rust prevention and cleaning. Since its introduction in 1953 by the Rocket Chemical Company, the WD-40 brand has become a household and industrial staple. Over time, the company has broadened its portfolio to include complementary maintenance and cleaning brands such as 3-IN-ONE® oils, Lava® hand cleaners, Solvol® solvents, Spot Shot® stain removers and X-14® cleaning products.

WD-40 Company distributes its products in more than 176 countries through retail, industrial and automotive channels.