First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Trims Stock Holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. cut its holdings in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 28.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,575 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,010 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Graco were worth $223,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GGG. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Graco by 16.2% in the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,198 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in Graco by 24.0% during the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 147,612 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $10,758,000 after acquiring an additional 28,589 shares during the last quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI lifted its position in Graco by 179.4% during the 4th quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 77,867 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,756,000 after acquiring an additional 50,000 shares during the period. Secure Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Graco in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,026,000. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of Graco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,112,000. 93.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on GGG shares. StockNews.com downgraded Graco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Graco from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Graco in a report on Friday, April 26th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Graco from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Graco from $90.00 to $87.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $88.25.

Graco Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of Graco stock opened at $83.02 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $89.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.44. The stock has a market cap of $14.04 billion, a PE ratio of 28.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.84. Graco Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.78 and a 12-month high of $94.77.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The industrial products company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.09). Graco had a return on equity of 23.01% and a net margin of 23.15%. The business had revenue of $492.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $536.19 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.74 earnings per share. Graco’s quarterly revenue was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Graco Inc. will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th were given a dividend of $0.255 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.17%.

Insider Activity at Graco

In other news, VP Angela F. Wordell sold 3,588 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.60, for a total value of $335,836.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 12,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,191,060. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Jody H. Feragen sold 5,036 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.29, for a total transaction of $464,772.44. Following the transaction, the director now owns 44,903 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,144,097.87. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Angela F. Wordell sold 3,588 shares of Graco stock in a transaction on 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 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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 45,483 shares of company stock valued at $4,123,245. 2.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.