Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Purchases Shares of 28,684 Graco Inc. $GGG

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 28,684 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,477,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Graco in the second quarter valued at approximately $170,661,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Graco by 116.8% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 735,146 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $63,201,000 after purchasing an additional 396,125 shares in the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Graco by 9.1% in the 2nd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,911,372 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $336,261,000 after purchasing an additional 326,877 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its stake in Graco by 55.7% during the 2nd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 693,111 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $59,587,000 after purchasing an additional 248,056 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Graco by 94.6% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 508,176 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,688,000 after purchasing an additional 246,984 shares in the last quarter. 93.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Graco Stock Performance

NYSE:GGG opened at $86.51 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $14.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.09. Graco Inc. has a 52 week low of $72.06 and a 52 week high of $89.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $83.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $84.00.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $543.36 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $563.07 million. Graco had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 22.72%.Graco’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.71 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Friday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback 15,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Graco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 19th will be given a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Graco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Graco’s payout ratio is 40.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Graco in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Robert W. Baird set a $89.00 price target on shares of Graco in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Graco in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Graco in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $87.00.

Graco 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.