Canoe Financial LP Decreases Stake in Graco Inc. $GGG

Canoe Financial LP reduced its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 12.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 486,374 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 68,000 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP owned approximately 0.29% of Graco worth $39,868,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GGG. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in Graco by 15.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 330,409 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,592,000 after acquiring an additional 44,573 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 982.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Graco by 0.9% in the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,079,571 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $92,811,000 after purchasing an additional 9,702 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Graco by 122.0% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 33,236 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,959,000 after purchasing an additional 18,262 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Graco by 262.1% during the second quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 11,729 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,008,000 after purchasing an additional 8,490 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on GGG shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Graco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Graco from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Robert W. Baird set a $96.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Graco in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $96.50.

Graco Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of GGG stock opened at $83.82 on Friday. Graco Inc. has a twelve month low of $72.06 and a twelve month high of $95.69. The stock has a market cap of $13.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.07. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $89.56 and a 200 day moving average of $85.33.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.77. The business 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.64 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Monday, April 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 13th. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is 38.19%.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director J Kevin Gilligan sold 12,870 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total transaction of $1,146,330.90. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Timothy R. White sold 1,469 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.70, for a total value of $133,238.30. Following the sale, the insider owned 51,430 shares in the company, valued at $4,664,701. This trade represents a 2.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 19,394 shares of company stock worth $1,739,326 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.18% of the company’s stock.

Graco 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.