Acadian Asset Management LLC Sells 44,014 Shares of Brady Corporation $BRC

Key Points

• Acadian Asset Management LLC significantly reduced its stake in Brady Corporation by 72.2%, selling 44,014 shares in the first quarter, leaving it with 16,930 shares valued at approximately $1.19 million.
• Brady Corporation reported earnings of $1.26 per share, exceeding analyst expectations, alongside a 15.7% increase in revenue compared to the previous year, reaching $397.28 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.245 per share, representing a 1.2% yield, set to be paid on October 31st to shareholders of record on October 10th.

Acadian Asset Management LLC lowered its position in shares of Brady Corporation (NYSE:BRC - Free Report) by 72.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,930 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 44,014 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC's holdings in Brady were worth $1,194,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Brady during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Brady during the 1st quarter valued at $74,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in Brady by 282.3% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,644 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 1,214 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Brady in the 1st quarter worth about $159,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Brady by 33.7% in the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,391 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $169,000 after purchasing an additional 602 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.28% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Brady from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Strong Buy".

Brady Trading Down 2.1%

Shares of NYSE:BRC traded down $1.68 on Friday, hitting $80.06. The company had a trading volume of 886,211 shares, compared to its average volume of 229,279. Brady Corporation has a 1 year low of $62.70 and a 1 year high of $84.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.37 and a beta of 0.83. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $74.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $71.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

Brady (NYSE:BRC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 4th. The industrial products company reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.02. Brady had a net margin of 12.50% and a return on equity of 19.29%. The company had revenue of $397.28 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $384.67 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.19 EPS. Brady's revenue was up 15.7% on a year-over-year basis. Brady has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.850-5.150 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Brady Corporation will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brady Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Brady news, CEO Russell Shaller sold 23,743 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.07, for a total transaction of $1,901,102.01. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 135,080 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,815,855.60. This trade represents a 14.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 15.60% of the company's stock.

Brady Company Profile

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.