Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Has $5.18 Million Holdings in Graco Inc. $GGG

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 22.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 63,138 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 18,064 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Graco were worth $5,175,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Graco by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,571,060 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $643,237,000 after acquiring an additional 99,097 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Graco by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,458,857 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $208,908,000 after acquiring an additional 75,285 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Graco by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,076,887 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $176,016,000 after purchasing an additional 53,126 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Graco by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,865,673 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $158,508,000 after purchasing an additional 14,764 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Graco by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,572,598 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $133,608,000 after purchasing an additional 42,381 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Graco news, EVP Angela F. Wordell sold 2,832 shares of Graco stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.22, for a total transaction of $263,999.04. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 13,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,245,419.20. The trade was a 17.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn L. Schoenrock sold 2,223 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.06, for a total transaction of $195,757.38. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $690,918.76. This represents a 22.08% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 19,394 shares of company stock valued at $1,739,326 over the last quarter. 2.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on GGG. Weiss Ratings raised Graco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Graco in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Robert W. Baird set a $96.00 price target on Graco in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Graco from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Graco from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $96.50.

Graco Stock Performance

Shares of GGG opened at $84.59 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.09. Graco Inc. has a 52 week low of $72.06 and a 52 week high of $95.69. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $89.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.31.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77. The company had revenue of $593.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $591.99 million. Graco had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 23.33%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.64 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Friday, December 5th that permits the company to buyback 15,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Graco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 13th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.19%.

Graco Company 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.