Cerity Partners LLC Purchases New Shares in WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC)

Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,610 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $385,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of WD-40 during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $510,000. Profit Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the fourth quarter valued at $2,892,000. Aviva PLC acquired a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the third quarter worth $586,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of WD-40 by 48.5% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 55,725 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $11,325,000 after buying an additional 18,205 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in WD-40 by 10.1% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 59,841 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $12,162,000 after buying an additional 5,481 shares during the period. 91.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at WD-40

In other WD-40 news, Director David Pendarvis acquired 328 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $234.75 per share, with a total value of $76,998.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,934 shares in the company, valued at $1,158,256.50. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, VP Jeffrey G. Lindeman purchased 182 shares of WD-40 stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $272.42 per share, with a total value of $49,580.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $837,146.66. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director David Pendarvis purchased 328 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 4,934 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,158,256.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders bought 942 shares of company stock valued at $226,897. 0.65% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

WD-40 Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:WDFC opened at $225.52 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $249.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $242.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. WD-40 has a 12-month low of $181.38 and a 12-month high of $278.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.01 and a beta of -0.06.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 9th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.01. WD-40 had a return on equity of 32.30% and a net margin of 12.19%. The business had revenue of $139.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $140.51 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.21 earnings per share. WD-40’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that WD-40 will post 5.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WD-40 Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. WD-40’s dividend payout ratio is 70.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $313.00 price objective on shares of WD-40 in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th.

WD-40 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.