LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / January 18, 2018 / Active-Investors.com has just released a free earnings report on WD-40 Co. (NASDAQ: WDFC). If you want access to this report all you need to do is sign up now by clicking the following link www.active-investors.com/registration-sg/?symbol=WDFC. WD-40 reported its first quarter fiscal 2018 operating and financial results on January 08, 2018. The maintenance and cleaning product Company outperformed top- and bottom-line expectations and raised its guidance for fiscal 2018. Register today and get access to over 1,000 Free Research Reports by joining our site below:

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Active-Investors.com is focused on giving you timely information and the inside line on companies that matter to you. This morning, WD-40 most recent news is on our radar and our team decided to put out a fantastic report on the company that is now available for free below:

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Earnings Highlights and Summary

For its first fiscal quarter ended November 30, 2017, WD-40's total net sales were $97.60 million, reflecting an increase of 9% compared to net sales of $89.25 million in Q1 FY17. On a constant currency basis, the Company's total net sales for Q1 FY18 would have been $96.2 million, representing an increase of 8% on a y-o-y basis. WD-40's reported numbers beat analysts' estimates of $93 million.

During Q1 FY18, WD-40's gross margin percentage was 55.5% compared to 57.2% in Q1 FY17. The Company's selling, general, and administrative (SG&A) expenses were up 8% to $31.2 million on a y-o-y basis in the reported quarter. WD-40's advertising and sales promotion expenses gained 6% to $5.1 million on a y-o-y basis.

For Q1 FY18, WD-40's net income grew 7% to $12.63 million compared to $11.76 million for Q1 FY17. The Company's diluted earnings per share were $0.90, up 9.8% compared to $0.82 in the prior year's same quarter, and came in ahead of Wall Street's estimates of $0.83 per share.

WD-40's Segment Results

During Q1 FY18, WD-40's net sales by segment as a percent of total net sales for the Americas were 47%; for EMEA was 36%; and for Asia-Pacific was at17%.

For Q1 FY18, WD-40's net sales in the Americas grew 8% to $46.16 million, primarily due to strong maintenance product sales in the United States, Latin America, and Canada which increased overall by 11% on a y-o-y basis. This higher level of sales was primarily attributable to an 11% increase of WD-40 Multi-Use product sales as well as a 16% growth of WD-40 Specialist sales throughout the Americas segment.

WD-40's net sales in EMEA region jumped 16% in Q1 FY18 to $35.03 million, primarily due to strong maintenance product sales in both the European direct and distributor markets which grew 17% on a y-o-y basis. This higher level of sales was primarily attributable to a 14% advance of WD-40 Multi-Use Product sales as well as a 77% growth of WD-40 Specialist sales throughout the EMEA segment compared to the prior year's same fiscal quarter.

During Q1 FY18, WD-40's net sales in Asia/Pacific grew 2% to $16.41 million, due to a 6% increase in sales in the Asia/Pacific distributor markets, primarily attributable to a higher level of promotional activities. Sales growth in the Asia distributor markets was partially offset by a 9% sales decline in China due to the timing of customer orders in the region.

For Q1 FY18, WD-40's net sales of maintenance products, which are considered the primary growth focus for the Company advanced 11% to $88.03 million. This increase was driven primarily by strong sales of both WD-40 Multi-Use Product and WD-40 Specialist. During Q1 FY18, WD-40's net sales of homecare and cleaning products dropped 5% to $9.57 million on a y-o-y basis.

Dividend and Share Repurchase

On December 12, 2017, WD-40 Company's Board of Directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.54 per share reflecting an increase of 10% over the previous quarter's dividend. The quarterly dividend is payable on January 31, 2018, to stockholders of record at the close of business on January 19, 2018.

On June 21, 2016, the Company's Board of Directors approved a share buy-back plan. Under the plan, which became effective on September 01, 2016, the Company is authorized to acquire up to $75.0 million of its outstanding shares through August 31, 2018. During the period from September 01, 2016, through November 30, 2017, the Company repurchased 328,823 shares at a total cost of $35.0 million under this $75.0 million plan.

Fiscal Year 2018 Updated Guidance

For Fiscal 2018, WD-40's net sales growth is projected to be between 4% and 6% with net sales expected to be between $396 million and $403 million. The Company's gross margin percentage is expected to be approximately 56% and advertising and promotion investments are projected to be near 6.0% of net sales. WD-40 is estimating net income for FY18 to be in the range of $54.4 million and $55.3 million and diluted earnings per share is expected to be between $3.91 and $3.98.

Stock Performance Snapshot

January 17, 2018 - At Wednesday's closing bell, WD-40's stock rose 1.04%, ending the trading session at $126.70.

Volume traded for the day: 59.14 thousand shares, which was above the 3-month average volume of 52.77 thousand shares.

Stock performance in the last month - up 8.15%; previous three-month period - up 11.04%; past twelve-month period - up 22.18%; and year-to-date - up 7.37%.

After yesterday's close, WD-40's market cap was at $1.75 billion.

Price to Earnings (P/E) ratio was at 34.00.

The stock has a dividend yield of 1.70%.

The stock is part of the Basic Materials sector, categorized under the Specialty Chemicals industry. This sector was up 0.5% at the end of the session.

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