Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Acquires Shares of 6,000 WD-40 Company $WDFC

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of WD-40 Company (NASDAQ:WDFC) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 6,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,224,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of WD-40 by 4,133.3% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 127 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its stake in WD-40 by 1,462.5% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 125 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in WD-40 by 207.8% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in WD-40 by 400.0% in the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 215 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in WD-40 by 195.4% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 257 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.52% of the company’s stock.

WD-40 Stock Performance

Shares of WDFC opened at $245.83 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $216.97 and its 200 day moving average is $217.70. WD-40 Company has a fifty-two week low of $175.38 and a fifty-two week high of $253.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.31 billion, a PE ratio of 41.81 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.83.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 9th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $154.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.32 earnings per share. WD-40’s revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that WD-40 Company will post 5.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WD-40 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be issued a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. WD-40’s payout ratio is 69.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Northcoast Research raised shares of WD-40 to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. William Blair began coverage on WD-40 in a report on Monday, April 6th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded WD-40 from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their price target on WD-40 from $300.00 to $270.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $270.00.

WD-40 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.