Korea Investment CORP Takes $9.29 Million Position in Graco Inc. $GGG

Korea Investment CORP bought a new position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 122,817 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,286,000. Korea Investment CORP owned about 0.08% of Graco as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in Graco by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 21,277 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,745,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Graco by 0.3% in the second quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC now owns 41,431 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,562,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Graco by 5.2% in the second quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,723 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $234,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Graco by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,813 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $231,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Graco by 43.2% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 504 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Price Performance

Shares of Graco stock opened at $80.18 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.92. Graco Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $72.51 and a fifty-two week high of $95.69. The firm has a market cap of $12.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.92.

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

Graco Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

About Graco

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.