Brady (NYSE:BRC) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

Key Points

• Brady Corporation's shares gapped up from $77.70 to $83.00 after reporting an earnings per share (EPS) of $1.26, beating estimates by $0.03.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.245 per share, marking an annualized dividend of $0.98 with a yield of 1.2%.
• Analysts have upgraded Brady's stock to a "Strong Buy" rating, reflecting positive sentiment in the market regarding the company's performance.

Brady Corporation (NYSE:BRC - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $77.70, but opened at $83.00. Brady shares last traded at $81.26, with a volume of 45,659 shares traded.

The industrial products company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $397.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $384.67 million. Brady had a return on equity of 19.29% and a net margin of 12.50%.The firm's revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.19 EPS. Brady has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.850-5.150 EPS.

Brady Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.245 per share. This represents a $0.98 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This is an increase from Brady's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Brady's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on BRC. Wall Street Zen upgraded Brady from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Sidoti raised Brady to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Brady has a consensus rating of "Strong Buy".

Institutional Trading of Brady

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Brady by 1,232.1% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 5,928 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $418,000 after buying an additional 5,483 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in Brady by 107.7% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 38,121 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,591,000 after buying an additional 19,771 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in Brady by 6.5% in the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 149,256 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $10,145,000 after buying an additional 9,052 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in Brady by 156.1% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,014 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 618 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Brady by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 117,231 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,967,000 after buying an additional 3,870 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.28% of the company's stock.

Brady Trading Down 1.8%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $72.32 and a 200 day moving average of $70.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm has a market cap of $3.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.11 and a beta of 0.83.

About Brady

Brady Corporation manufactures and supplies identification solutions (IDS) and workplace safety (WPS) products to identify and protect premises, products, and people in the United States and internationally. The company offers materials, printing systems, RFID, and bar code scanners for product identification, brand protection labeling, work in process labeling, finished product identification, and industrial track and trace applications; safety signs, floor-marking tapes, pipe markers, labeling systems, spill control products, lockout/tagout device, and software and services for safety compliance auditing, procedure writing, and training; and hand-held printers, wire markers, sleeves, and tags for wire identification.