Graco (NYSE:GGG) Downgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com lowered shares of Graco (NYSE:GGG) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Friday.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on GGG. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Graco from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. William Blair reaffirmed a market perform rating on shares of Graco in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Graco from $90.00 to $87.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Graco from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $85.60.

Graco Trading Down 0.7 %

GGG opened at $82.56 on Friday. Graco has a 12-month low of $69.78 and a 12-month high of $94.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.96 billion, a PE ratio of 28.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $91.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $84.84.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The industrial products company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $492.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $536.19 million. Graco had a return on equity of 23.01% and a net margin of 23.15%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.74 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Graco will post 3.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.255 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.24%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Graco news, insider Timothy R. White sold 2,895 shares of Graco stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.49, for a total transaction of $253,283.55. Following the sale, the insider now owns 50,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,442,917.18. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Graco news, insider Anthony J. Gargano sold 1,395 shares of Graco stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.00, for a total transaction of $122,760.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $501,336. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Timothy R. White sold 2,895 shares of Graco stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.49, for a total transaction of $253,283.55. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 50,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,442,917.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 48,378 shares of company stock valued at $4,376,528 in the last 90 days. 2.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Graco

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GGG. Tobam boosted its position in shares of Graco by 2,330.8% during the 4th quarter. Tobam now owns 316 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Graco during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Graco during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Graco during the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Graco by 3,063.2% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Company Profile

Graco Inc designs, manufactures, and markets systems and equipment used to move, measure, control, dispense, and spray fluid and powder materials worldwide. The Contractor segment offers sprayers to apply paint to walls and other structures; two-component proportioning systems that are used to spray polyurethane foam and polyurea coatings; and viscous coatings to roofs, as well as markings on roads, parking lots, athletic fields, and floors.