Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $93.50.

GGG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $92.00 price target (down from $95.00) on shares of Graco in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Wolfe Research lowered Graco from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Graco from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Graco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Graco in a report on Monday, April 27th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Andrea Helen Simon acquired 1,240 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $80.53 per share, for a total transaction of $99,857.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $99,857.20. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Graco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. AE Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Graco by 32.7% during the 4th quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 398,336 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,652,000 after buying an additional 98,141 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank increased its holdings in Graco by 54.1% in the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 172,328 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,126,000 after acquiring an additional 60,486 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in Graco by 20,706.4% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 556,362 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,605,000 after acquiring an additional 553,688 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in Graco by 294.4% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 297,787 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $24,410,000 after acquiring an additional 222,279 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Graco by 299.6% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 342,247 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,263,000 after acquiring an additional 256,593 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Price Performance

GGG stock opened at $73.19 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $75.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.77. The company has a market capitalization of $12.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.93. Graco has a 12 month low of $72.51 and a 12 month high of $95.69.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.75 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $540.14 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $561.35 million. Graco had a return on equity of 18.66% and a net margin of 22.96%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.70 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Graco will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.44%.

Graco Company Profile

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.