Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Shares Acquired by Forsta AP Fonden

Forsta AP Fonden lifted its holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 9.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 98,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,700 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in Graco were worth $8,585,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gradient Investments LLC purchased a new position in Graco in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Graco in the first quarter valued at $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Graco by 187.8% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 495 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the period. Tobam grew its stake in Graco by 90.2% during the 1st quarter. Tobam now owns 601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in Graco during the 3rd quarter worth about $59,000. 93.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Graco Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of GGG opened at $82.14 on Monday. Graco Inc. has a 52-week low of $70.80 and a 52-week high of $94.77. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $83.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $82.58. The company has a market capitalization of $13.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.81.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.05). Graco had a return on equity of 22.40% and a net margin of 23.16%. The company had revenue of $519.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $538.19 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.76 earnings per share. Graco’s revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 2.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st will be given a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 21st. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Graco from $96.00 to $93.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.25.

Graco Company Profile

Graco Inc designs, manufactures, and markets systems and equipment used to move, measure, control, dispense, and spray fluid and powder materials worldwide. The Contractor segment offers sprayers to apply paint to walls and other structures; two-component proportioning systems that are used to spray polyurethane foam and polyurea coatings; and viscous coatings to roofs, as well as markings on roads, parking lots, athletic fields, and floors.