Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec Invests $141.67 Million in Graco Inc. $GGG

Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec acquired a new position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 1,873,659 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $141,667,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec owned approximately 1.16% of Graco at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GGG. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Graco during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC raised 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 purchasing an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Essential Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Graco by 78.6% in the first quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 359 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Graco by 982.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 452 shares during the period. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in Graco by 43.2% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 504 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GGG opened at $79.58 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $12.89 billion, a PE ratio of 25.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $78.02 and a 200-day moving average of $81.74. Graco Inc. has a one year low of $72.51 and a one year high of $95.69.

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

Graco Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th were given a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 20th. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Graco from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings raised 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 target price on Graco in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered Graco from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Graco has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $95.00.

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.