Russell Investments Group Ltd. Reduces Position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. decreased its position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 745,407 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 14,495 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.44% of Graco worth $64,681,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tobam grew its holdings in Graco by 2,330.8% in the 4th quarter. Tobam now owns 316 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graco in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Graco during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in Graco by 3,063.2% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Graco by 370.7% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 626 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 493 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Graco Stock Down 0.7 %

Graco stock opened at $82.56 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $91.03 and its 200 day moving average is $85.02. The company has a market capitalization of $13.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.47, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.81. Graco Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.78 and a twelve month high of $94.77.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The industrial products company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.09). Graco had a net margin of 23.15% and a return on equity of 23.01%. The firm had revenue of $492.19 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $536.19 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.14 EPS for the current year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be issued a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Graco from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut shares of Graco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Graco in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Graco from $90.00 to $87.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Graco from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $88.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Graco

In other news, VP Angela F. Wordell sold 3,588 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.60, for a total value of $335,836.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 12,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,191,060. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Graco news, insider Timothy R. White sold 2,895 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.49, for a total transaction of $253,283.55. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 50,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,442,917.18. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Angela F. Wordell sold 3,588 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.60, for a total transaction of $335,836.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,191,060. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 48,378 shares of company stock worth $4,376,528 over the last 90 days. 2.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Graco

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.