Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Lowers Stake in Graco Inc. $GGG

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA cut its position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 7.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,531,694 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 127,688 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 0.92% of Graco worth $130,133,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Graco by 432.6% in the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 85,654 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,263,000 after buying an additional 69,573 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 39,031 shares in the last quarter. Addenda Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Graco in the third quarter worth about $4,837,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 12,575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new stake in Graco during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,806,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Price Performance

Shares of GGG opened at $84.85 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.96, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.09. Graco Inc. has a 1-year low of $72.06 and a 1-year high of $89.67. The company has a 50-day moving average of $83.17 and a 200 day moving average of $83.96.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $543.36 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $563.07 million. Graco had a return on equity of 18.89% and a net margin of 22.72%.Graco’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.71 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Increases Dividend

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

Graco declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Friday, December 5th that allows the company to repurchase 15,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on GGG. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Graco in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Robert W. Baird set a $89.00 target price on shares of Graco in a report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Graco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 25th. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Graco in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Graco presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $87.00.

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.