WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) Shares Sold by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC lowered its holdings in shares of WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC - Free Report) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 35,876 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 1,218 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned about 0.26% of WD-40 worth $8,707,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of WD-40 by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,627,684 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $395,006,000 after acquiring an additional 16,763 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of WD-40 by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 385,779 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $93,638,000 after buying an additional 7,664 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of WD-40 by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 227,661 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $55,249,000 after purchasing an additional 2,300 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in WD-40 in the fourth quarter worth about $54,571,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in WD-40 by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 150,557 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $36,537,000 after acquiring an additional 5,095 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.52% of the company's stock.

WD-40 Trading Up 0.9 %

WDFC traded up $1.99 on Tuesday, reaching $225.02. 3,839 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 100,777. WD-40 has a one year low of $208.00 and a one year high of $292.36. The company has a market cap of $3.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.16 and a beta of 0.03. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $233.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $247.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 8th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.05. WD-40 had a return on equity of 31.68% and a net margin of 11.78%. The business had revenue of $146.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $154.40 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that WD-40 will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current year.

WD-40 Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 18th will be paid a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. WD-40's dividend payout ratio is presently 59.97%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, DA Davidson raised WD-40 to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Sara Kathleen Hyzer purchased 256 shares of WD-40 stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $222.83 per share, with a total value of $57,044.48. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 4,072 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $907,363.76. The trade was a 6.71 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company's stock.

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.