BNP Paribas Financial Markets Boosts Stake in WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC - Free Report) by 39.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,937 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 2,524 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned approximately 0.07% of WD-40 worth $2,305,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WD-40 by 80.5% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 69,650 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $15,298,000 after buying an additional 31,055 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. boosted its position in WD-40 by 13.7% in the second quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 92,005 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $20,208,000 after purchasing an additional 11,112 shares during the last quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in WD-40 in the third quarter worth about $1,960,000. Citigroup Inc. grew its position in WD-40 by 65.0% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 17,958 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $4,631,000 after buying an additional 7,077 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of WD-40 by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 60,925 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $13,382,000 after acquiring an additional 6,434 shares during the period. 91.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director William B. Noble sold 1,000 shares of WD-40 stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.70, for a total transaction of $289,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,999 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,317,310.30. This trade represents a 11.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on WDFC shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on WD-40 from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. DA Davidson restated a "buy" rating and set a $322.00 target price on shares of WD-40 in a research note on Monday, November 18th.

WD-40 Price Performance

NASDAQ WDFC traded down $1.85 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $273.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 44,432 shares, compared to its average volume of 83,498. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. WD-40 has a 1 year low of $211.03 and a 1 year high of $292.36. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $269.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $251.78. The company has a market capitalization of $3.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.58 and a beta of -0.07.

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

WD-40 Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were given a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.29%. WD-40's dividend payout ratio is presently 68.88%.

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.