Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Invests $340,000 in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 3,919 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $340,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in Graco by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 27,434 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,380,000 after buying an additional 1,573 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC bought a new position in Graco in the 4th quarter valued at about $614,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its stake in shares of Graco by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 379,294 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,908,000 after purchasing an additional 7,693 shares during the period. Private Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Graco by 15.3% during the fourth quarter. Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 17,060 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,480,000 after buying an additional 2,260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc raised its stake in Graco by 27.1% in the 4th quarter. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc now owns 23,215 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,014,000 after purchasing an additional 4,950 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Graco Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE GGG opened at $83.51 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $89.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.46. Graco Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.78 and a 12-month high of $94.77. The firm has a market cap of $14.12 billion, a PE ratio of 28.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.84.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The industrial products company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $492.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $536.19 million. Graco had a return on equity of 23.01% and a net margin of 23.15%. Graco’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.74 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th were issued a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.17%.

About Graco

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.