Graco Inc. $GGG Shares Sold by Intech Investment Management LLC

Intech Investment Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 16.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,716 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 6,512 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Graco were worth $2,865,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Graco by 432.6% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 85,654 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,263,000 after purchasing an additional 69,573 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in Graco by 154.2% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 64,341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,466,000 after purchasing an additional 39,031 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG raised its holdings in shares of Graco by 191.8% in the third quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 8,809 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $744,000 after buying an additional 5,790 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Graco by 3.2% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,458,857 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $208,908,000 after buying an additional 75,285 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Graco by 18.3% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 81,202 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,899,000 after buying an additional 12,575 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Stock Performance

Graco stock opened at $94.83 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $15.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.07. Graco Inc. has a one year low of $72.06 and a one year high of $95.69. The business has a fifty day moving average of $88.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.13.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77. Graco had a net margin of 23.33% and a return on equity of 19.49%. The business had revenue of $593.16 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $591.99 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.64 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 EPS for the current year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 13th will be issued a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 13th. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.19%.

Graco declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Friday, December 5th that allows the company to buyback 15,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on GGG. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Graco from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Graco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Graco from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Graco in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Graco in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $96.50.

Insider Activity at Graco

In other news, EVP Kathryn L. Schoenrock sold 2,223 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.06, for a total transaction of $195,757.38. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $690,918.76. The trade was a 22.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director J Kevin Gilligan sold 12,870 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total value of $1,146,330.90. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 19,394 shares of company stock valued at $1,739,326 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.19% of the company’s stock.

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.