348 Shares in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Acquired by Brooklyn Investment Group

Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 348 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GGG. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new stake in Graco during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Graco by 187.8% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 495 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Graco by 220.9% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 690 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Graco during the third quarter worth about $59,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graco in the third quarter worth about $67,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Price Performance

Shares of GGG opened at $91.08 on Friday. Graco Inc. has a one year low of $77.49 and a one year high of $94.77. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $86.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.38 billion, a PE ratio of 32.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.82.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $519.21 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $538.19 million. Graco had a net margin of 22.87% and a return on equity of 21.24%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.76 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were paid a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 21st. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.12%. Graco’s payout ratio is 36.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on GGG. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Graco from $96.00 to $93.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 price target on shares of Graco in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $89.25.

Insider Activity at Graco

In related news, EVP Kathryn L. Schoenrock sold 1,527 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.30, for a total transaction of $137,888.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $575,572.20. This trade represents a 19.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,216 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.31, for a total value of $284,004.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,246 shares in the company, valued at $2,406,094.26. This trade represents a 10.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 22,818 shares of company stock valued at $2,026,230 in the last three months. Company insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

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.