VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Buys New Holdings in Gorman-Rupp Company (The) $GRC

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in Gorman-Rupp Company (The) (NYSE:GRC) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 9,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $685,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Gorman-Rupp during the 2nd quarter valued at $165,116,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of Gorman-Rupp in the 2nd quarter worth $33,565,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Gorman-Rupp by 326.1% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 524,400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,581,000 after acquiring an additional 401,340 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of Gorman-Rupp in the second quarter worth $28,291,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Gorman-Rupp in the second quarter worth $16,235,000. 59.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gorman-Rupp Stock Performance

GRC stock traded down $0.41 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $67.69. 132,440 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 172,422. Gorman-Rupp Company has a 52-week low of $42.31 and a 52-week high of $92.78. The stock has a market cap of $1.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.17, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 2.70, a quick ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $73.82 and its 200 day moving average is $72.81.

Gorman-Rupp (NYSE:GRC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.16. Gorman-Rupp had a net margin of 10.20% and a return on equity of 17.13%. The business had revenue of $193.25 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $181.55 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Gorman-Rupp Company will post 2.88 EPS for the current year.

Gorman-Rupp Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 13th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from Gorman-Rupp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. Gorman-Rupp’s payout ratio is 27.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on GRC shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Gorman-Rupp in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. Wall Street Zen raised Gorman-Rupp from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 31st. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Gorman-Rupp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold”.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP D. Patrick Wischmeier sold 5,153 shares of Gorman-Rupp stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.62, for a total transaction of $399,975.86. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $109,366.58. The trade was a 78.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 11.60% of the company’s stock.

Gorman-Rupp Company Profile

Gorman-Rupp Co designs, manufactures and sells pumps and pumping systems for moving water and other liquids. Its product portfolio includes self-priming centrifugal pumps, standard centrifugal pumps, submersible pumps, rotary gear pumps, diaphragm pumps and related pumping equipment.

The company serves a range of markets, including municipal water and wastewater treatment, construction, agriculture, industrial operations, petroleum, fire protection and emergency services. Its products are used in applications such as sewage handling, flood control, dewatering, irrigation and general fluid transfer.

Founded in 1933 by J.C.