Federated Hermes Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in WD-40 Company (NASDAQ:WDFC)

Key Points

• Federated Hermes Inc. reduced its stake in WD-40 Company by 34.4%, selling 4,450 shares in the first quarter, leaving them with a total of 8,493 shares valued at $2,072,000.
• WD-40 Company reported earnings per share of $1.54 for the last quarter, beating expectations, though revenue fell short of estimates at $156.92 million compared to an expected $160.60 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.94 per share, with a current dividend yield of 1.7% and a payout ratio of 59.21%.

Federated Hermes Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of WD-40 Company (NASDAQ:WDFC - Free Report) by 34.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,493 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 4,450 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. owned about 0.06% of WD-40 worth $2,072,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WDFC. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in WD-40 by 28,448.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 114,192 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $27,863,000 after buying an additional 113,792 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in WD-40 by 206.9% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 158,156 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $38,381,000 after purchasing an additional 106,617 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of WD-40 during the fourth quarter worth approximately $17,903,000. GCQ FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY Ltd increased its position in WD-40 by 245.0% in the 1st quarter. GCQ FUNDS MANAGEMENT PTY Ltd now owns 64,423 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $15,719,000 after acquiring an additional 45,747 shares during the period. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in WD-40 during the 4th quarter valued at $10,179,000. 91.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, DA Davidson lowered their price target on WD-40 from $322.00 to $300.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 11th.

WD-40 Price Performance

NASDAQ:WDFC traded down $0.96 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $219.48. 66,097 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 150,467. The company has a market capitalization of $2.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.56 and a beta of 0.15. The company has a current ratio of 2.84, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. WD-40 Company has a one year low of $208.00 and a one year high of $292.36. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $230.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $233.12.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 10th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $156.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $160.60 million. WD-40 had a return on equity of 31.23% and a net margin of 14.13%. The company's revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.46 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that WD-40 Company will post 5.42 EPS for the current year.

WD-40 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th were paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 18th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. WD-40's dividend payout ratio is currently 59.21%.

WD-40 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.