Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC Boosts Position in WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC)

Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC - Free Report) by 1.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 321,760 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 5,381 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC owned 2.38% of WD-40 worth $82,975,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WDFC. PineStone Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in WD-40 by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 40,700 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $10,496,000 after acquiring an additional 1,700 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in shares of WD-40 by 9.8% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,542 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in WD-40 by 3.9% in the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 21,898 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $5,647,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its position in WD-40 by 4.3% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 43,466 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $11,209,000 after purchasing an additional 1,810 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in WD-40 by 28.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 393 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $101,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.52% of the company's stock.

WD-40 Price Performance

WDFC traded up $2.32 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $264.39. The stock had a trading volume of 73,800 shares, compared to its average volume of 106,678. WD-40 has a 1 year low of $211.03 and a 1 year high of $278.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.47. The business has a fifty day moving average of $259.05 and a 200 day moving average of $243.47. The company has a market cap of $3.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.29 and a beta of -0.08.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.11). WD-40 had a return on equity of 31.53% and a net margin of 11.79%. The business had revenue of $156.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $149.20 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.21 EPS. WD-40's revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that WD-40 will post 5.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WD-40 Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were issued a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 18th. WD-40's dividend payout ratio is presently 68.88%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on WDFC. DA Davidson raised their price objective on shares of WD-40 from $303.00 to $322.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on WD-40 from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director William B. Noble sold 800 shares of WD-40 stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.98, for a total value of $205,584.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,999 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,312,563.02. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.65% of the company's stock.

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.