Brady (NYSE:BRC) Sets New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Brady Co. (NYSE:BRC) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $77.60 and last traded at $77.36, with a volume of 3300 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $76.71.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Brady from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th.

Brady Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $74.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $69.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09.

Brady (NYSE:BRC) last announced its earnings results on Friday, September 6th. The industrial products company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $343.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $351.74 million. Brady had a net margin of 14.70% and a return on equity of 19.84%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Brady Co. will post 4.55 EPS for the current year.

Brady Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is a boost from Brady’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. Brady’s payout ratio is presently 23.59%.

Insider Activity at Brady

In other Brady news, CEO Russell Shaller sold 12,547 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.08, for a total transaction of $916,934.76. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 102,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,520,297.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Brady news, CEO Russell Shaller sold 12,547 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.08, for a total value of $916,934.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 102,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,520,297.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Thomas F. Debruine sold 2,851 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.77, for a total value of $216,020.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 9,727 shares in the company, valued at $737,014.79. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 45,262 shares of company stock worth $3,371,231. 15.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brady

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BRC. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Brady by 65.3% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 663 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Brady by 337.1% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 918 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 708 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its holdings in Brady by 36.1% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 962 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in Brady in the 1st quarter worth approximately $66,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brady during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $119,000. Institutional investors own 76.28% of the company’s stock.

Brady Company Profile

Brady Corporation manufactures and supplies identification solutions (IDS) and workplace safety (WPS) products to identify and protect premises, products, and people in the United States and internationally. The company offers materials, printing systems, RFID, and bar code scanners for product identification, brand protection labeling, work in process labeling, finished product identification, and industrial track and trace applications; safety signs, floor-marking tapes, pipe markers, labeling systems, spill control products, lockout/tagout device, and software and services for safety compliance auditing, procedure writing, and training; and hand-held printers, wire markers, sleeves, and tags for wire identification.