Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Shares Purchased by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 429.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 226,870 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 184,018 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.13% of Graco worth $19,683,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Graco during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Graco during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Money Concepts Capital Corp lifted its holdings in Graco by 569.7% in the fourth quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 509 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Graco in the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Graco by 3,063.2% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 582 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Graco

In related news, VP Angela F. Wordell sold 3,588 shares of the 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 approximately $1,191,060. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Graco news, CEO Mark W. Sheahan sold 12,884 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.37, for a total value of $1,074,139.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 93,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,768,583.34. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Angela F. Wordell sold 3,588 shares of the firm’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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,191,060. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 61,262 shares of company stock valued at $5,450,667. 2.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Graco from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Graco from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Graco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $84.80.

Graco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GGG opened at $94.17 on Thursday. Graco Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.76 and a 1 year high of $94.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.81. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $89.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.52.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.01. Graco had a return on equity of 24.61% and a net margin of 23.07%. The firm had revenue of $566.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $565.86 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a $0.255 dividend. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.69%.

Graco 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.