Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $1.18 Million Stock Holdings in WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its position in WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,927 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 69 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in WD-40 were worth $1,178,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of WD-40 by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 314,362 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $75,155,000 after purchasing an additional 3,117 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in WD-40 by 2.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 152,552 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $31,005,000 after acquiring an additional 3,334 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in WD-40 by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 133,356 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,103,000 after acquiring an additional 3,352 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of WD-40 by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 90,872 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $18,469,000 after acquiring an additional 583 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of WD-40 by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 59,841 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $12,162,000 after purchasing an additional 5,481 shares during the period. 91.52% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

WD-40 Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WDFC opened at $235.17 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $243.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $244.15. WD-40 has a fifty-two week low of $182.53 and a fifty-two week high of $278.78. The company has a market capitalization of $3.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.94 and a beta of -0.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 2.27 and a quick ratio of 1.56.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 9th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $139.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $140.51 million. WD-40 had a net margin of 12.19% and a return on equity of 32.30%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.21 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that WD-40 will post 5.22 earnings per share for the current year.

WD-40 Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th were paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 18th. WD-40’s payout ratio is presently 70.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $313.00 price objective on shares of WD-40 in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other WD-40 news, VP Jeffrey G. Lindeman purchased 182 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $272.42 per share, with a total value of $49,580.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,073 shares in the company, valued at approximately $837,146.66. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Jeffrey G. Lindeman purchased 182 shares of WD-40 stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $272.42 per share, for a total transaction of $49,580.44. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president now directly owns 3,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $837,146.66. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Steven A. Brass acquired 432 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 16th. The shares were bought at an average price of $232.22 per share, for a total transaction of $100,319.04. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 20,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,771,424.34. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 942 shares of company stock worth $226,897. Corporate insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

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.