Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co Purchases 6,214 Shares of Graco Inc. $GGG

Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 30.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,456 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,214 shares during the quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Graco were worth $2,248,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Graco during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in Graco by 320.7% during the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 345 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 263 shares during the period. CX Institutional lifted its position in shares of Graco by 316.7% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 475 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Graco by 42.6% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 465 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Graco by 982.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. 93.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Graco Stock Up 0.6%

GGG stock opened at $93.01 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $88.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.24. Graco Inc. has a 52 week low of $72.06 and a 52 week high of $95.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 1.07.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77. The firm had revenue of $593.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $591.99 million. Graco had a net margin of 23.33% and a return on equity of 19.49%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 EPS for the current 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 paid 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 dividend yield of 1.3%. Graco’s payout ratio is currently 38.19%.

Graco announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Friday, December 5th that authorizes the company to buyback 15,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the industrial products company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Graco news, insider Timothy R. White sold 1,469 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.70, for a total transaction of $133,238.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 51,430 shares in the company, valued at $4,664,701. The trade was a 2.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director J Kevin Gilligan sold 12,870 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.07, for a total value of $1,146,330.90. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 19,394 shares of company stock valued at $1,739,326. 2.19% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.