Freestone Grove Partners LP Makes New $8.61 Million Investment in Graco Inc. $GGG

Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 113,928 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,614,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Graco in the first quarter worth $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised its position in Graco by 2,650.0% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the period. Essential Partners LLC lifted its stake in Graco by 78.6% in the 1st quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 359 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Graco by 2,540.0% in the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 528 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Graco by 982.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 452 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on GGG. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Graco from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Graco from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Graco from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Graco currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $95.00.

Graco Stock Down 0.6%

GGG stock opened at $79.14 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $12.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.92. Graco Inc. has a 12 month low of $72.51 and a 12 month high of $95.69. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $78.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.62.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.10. Graco had a net margin of 23.53% and a return on equity of 19.54%. The business had revenue of $590.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $608.06 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.75 EPS. Graco’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 20th were given a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 20th. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.11%.

Graco 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.