Kestra Investment Management LLC Grows Stake in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Kestra Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 55.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,921 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,391 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Graco were worth $331,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Graco by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 5,209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $439,000 after acquiring an additional 271 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Graco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Graco by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,328,179 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $196,242,000 after purchasing an additional 337,437 shares during the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. bought a new position in shares of Graco in the 4th quarter worth $3,813,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Graco by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,007 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Graco from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $91.50.

Graco Stock Up 0.0 %

NYSE GGG opened at $87.18 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.88. Graco Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.49 and a 12-month high of $94.77. The firm has a market cap of $14.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.91, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.84.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.13). Graco had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 19.38%. Equities analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.07 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 7th. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.26%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Graco

In related news, EVP Kathryn L. Schoenrock sold 1,527 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.30, for a total value of $137,888.10. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Caroline M. Chambers sold 8,280 shares of Graco stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.57, for a total transaction of $749,919.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 57,612 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,217,918.84. This trade represents a 12.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.63% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.