BNP Paribas Financial Markets Sells 6,668 Shares of WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets cut its holdings in WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC - Free Report) by 74.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,269 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 6,668 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets' holdings in WD-40 were worth $551,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in WDFC. Norges Bank bought a new position in WD-40 during the fourth quarter worth $54,571,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in WD-40 in the fourth quarter worth approximately $17,903,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its stake in WD-40 by 55.4% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 104,431 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $25,343,000 after acquiring an additional 37,247 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of WD-40 by 309.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 37,094 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $9,566,000 after acquiring an additional 28,039 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of WD-40 by 51.3% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 81,634 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $19,811,000 after acquiring an additional 27,684 shares in the last quarter. 91.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

WD-40 Stock Performance

Shares of WDFC traded up $1.92 on Thursday, reaching $241.11. 338,336 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 102,629. The stock has a market cap of $3.27 billion, a PE ratio of 46.19 and a beta of 0.17. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $233.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $243.10. WD-40 has a 52-week low of $208.00 and a 52-week high of $292.36.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.05. WD-40 had a net margin of 11.78% and a return on equity of 31.68%. The company had revenue of $146.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $154.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.14 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that WD-40 will post 5.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WD-40 Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 18th were issued a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. WD-40's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.97%.

Insider Activity at WD-40

In other news, CFO Sara Kathleen Hyzer acquired 256 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $222.83 per share, for a total transaction 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.75% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About WD-40

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.