Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the five brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $89.25.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on GGG shares. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Graco from $96.00 to $93.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 target price on shares of Graco in a report on Friday, September 27th.

Graco Price Performance

NYSE:GGG opened at $89.62 on Tuesday. Graco has a 1-year low of $77.49 and a 1-year high of $94.77. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $85.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $82.47. The firm has a market cap of $15.13 billion, a PE ratio of 31.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.82.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.05). Graco had a net margin of 22.87% and a return on equity of 21.24%. The business had revenue of $519.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $538.19 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.76 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Graco will post 2.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 21st were issued a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.04%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,216 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.31, for a total transaction of $284,004.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,246 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,406,094.26. This represents a 10.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Gradient Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Graco during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Graco during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new stake in Graco during the 1st quarter worth $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Graco by 187.8% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 495 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new position in Graco in the 3rd quarter valued at about $59,000. 93.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.