California Public Employees Retirement System Sells 3,367 Shares of WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC)

California Public Employees Retirement System reduced its position in WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC - Free Report) by 11.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 25,486 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 3,367 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned 0.19% of WD-40 worth $6,185,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Schroder Investment Management Group bought a new position in shares of WD-40 in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,071,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its stake in WD-40 by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,940 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $471,000 after buying an additional 293 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new stake in WD-40 during the fourth quarter valued at $193,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in WD-40 during the fourth quarter worth about $54,571,000. Finally, IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd increased its stake in WD-40 by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd now owns 4,881 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,185,000 after acquiring an additional 478 shares during the last quarter. 91.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

WD-40 Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ:WDFC traded up $0.68 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $222.03. 164,236 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 101,571. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 2.44 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $236.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $250.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.53 and a beta of 0.03. WD-40 has a 12-month low of $208.00 and a 12-month high of $292.36.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC - Get Free Report) last announced 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. The company had revenue of $146.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $154.40 million. WD-40 had a net margin of 11.78% and a return on equity of 31.68%. WD-40's revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.14 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 18th will be given a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. WD-40's payout ratio is currently 59.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $322.00 price objective on shares of WD-40 in a report on Monday, January 27th.

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.