WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) Stock Breaks Below 200-Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

WD-40 Company (NASDAQ:WDFC) crossed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $220.04 and traded as low as $218.87. WD-40 shares last traded at $219.50, with a volume of 74,282 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on WDFC shares. Weiss Ratings cut shares of WD-40 from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. Zacks Research lowered shares of WD-40 from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, WD-40 presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $305.00.

WD-40 Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.74 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a current ratio of 2.57. The company has a 50 day moving average of $206.60 and a 200 day moving average of $220.07.

WD-40 (NASDAQ:WDFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $176.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $172.07 million. WD-40 had a net margin of 11.97% and a return on equity of 30.84%. WD-40’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.56 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that WD-40 Company will post 6.55 EPS for the current year.

WD-40 Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 30th. Investors of record on Monday, October 19th were paid a dividend of $1.02 per share. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 19th. WD-40’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.11%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $505,734,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of WD-40 in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,854,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of WD-40 by 41.9% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 411,312 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $83,883,000 after purchasing an additional 121,358 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of WD-40 during the 2nd quarter worth $29,162,000. Finally, Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of WD-40 during the second quarter worth $9,155,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.52% of the company’s stock.

WD-40 Company Profile

WD-40 Company develops and markets maintenance, cleaning and personal-care products for consumers and industrial users. Its best-known product is WD-40 Multi-Use Product, which is used to protect metal from corrosion, displace moisture, lubricate and loosen stuck parts. The company also sells products under brands including WD-40 Specialist and 3-IN-ONE. Founded in 1953 as Rocket Chemical Company, the business initially developed products for the aerospace industry. Its name later changed to WD-40 Company, reflecting the formula that became its signature product.