WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) Shares Sold by Bridgewater Associates LP

Bridgewater Associates LP cut its stake in shares of WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) by 61.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,515 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 5,722 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP’s holdings in WD-40 were worth $906,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WDFC. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of WD-40 during the third quarter worth about $29,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale acquired a new position in shares of WD-40 during the first quarter worth about $34,000. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of WD-40 by 41.3% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 226 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new position in shares of WD-40 during the second quarter worth about $67,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of WD-40 by 34.9% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 325 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $84,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. 91.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William B. Noble sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.70, for a total value of $289,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,999 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,317,310.30. This represents a 11.11 % 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 this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

WD-40 Stock Performance

Shares of WDFC opened at $277.09 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $267.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $250.66. 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 company has a market capitalization of $3.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.23 and a beta of -0.08. WD-40 has a 52-week low of $211.03 and a 52-week high of $292.36.

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

WD-40 Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th were issued a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. WD-40’s payout ratio is currently 68.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on WDFC shares. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $322.00 price target on shares of WD-40 in a report on Monday, November 18th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on WD-40 from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th.

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.