Graco (NYSE:GGG) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $89.70 and last traded at $88.8460, with a volume of 213718 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $88.48.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GGG has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $96.00 price target on Graco in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Graco from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Graco in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Graco in a report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Graco from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $96.50.

Graco Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $14.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.58, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $84.39 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.94.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.77. The firm had revenue of $593.16 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $591.99 million. Graco had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 23.33%.Graco’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.64 EPS. Research analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 19th will be given a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. This is a boost from Graco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Graco’s payout ratio is currently 38.19%.

Graco declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback 15,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Graco in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Graco by 320.7% during the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 345 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the period. CX Institutional increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 316.7% during the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 475 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Graco by 42.6% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 465 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, Field & Main Bank acquired a new position in Graco in the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

About Graco

Graco Inc is a leading manufacturer of fluid handling systems and components, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded in 1926, the company has built a reputation for innovation in spray finishing, lubrication, and fluid management technologies. Graco’s solutions are designed to address the needs of paint and coatings applicators, general industry, and process fluids in a variety of end markets.

The company’s product portfolio includes airless and air-assisted spray equipment, pumps for oil and gas applications, industrial lubrication systems, and automated dispensing equipment.