Krilogy Financial LLC Acquires New Stake in Graco Inc. $GGG

Krilogy Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 7,770 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $612,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Graco in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 318 shares during the period. Essential Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Graco by 78.6% during the first quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 359 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Graco by 43.2% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 504 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the period. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Graco by 2,540.0% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 528 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. 93.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Graco Stock Performance

Shares of GGG stock opened at $82.06 on Friday. Graco Inc. has a 52 week low of $72.51 and a 52 week high of $95.69. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $78.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $78.63. The company has a market capitalization of $13.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.89.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.10. Graco had a return on equity of 19.54% and a net margin of 23.53%. The company had revenue of $590.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $608.06 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.75 earnings per share. Graco’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Graco Inc. will post 3.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 19th will be issued a $0.2950 dividend. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 19th. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on GGG. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 price target on shares of Graco in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Graco from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Graco from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Graco from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Graco has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.75.

Graco Company Profile

Graco Inc is a Minneapolis-based manufacturer of equipment used to manage, measure, control and apply fluids and coatings. Its products are used in industrial, commercial and residential applications, including fluid handling, lubrication, dispensing, sealing, bonding, painting and corrosion protection.

The company’s product portfolio includes pumps, valves, meters, regulators, controls, proportioning systems and spray equipment. Graco also supplies equipment for paint and texture application, protective coatings, sealants and adhesives, vehicle servicing, and the automated lubrication of machinery.