Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Shares Acquired by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. increased its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 8.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,109 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,107 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Graco were worth $2,369,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of GGG. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 4,938 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $432,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its position in Graco by 4.9% during the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 47,638 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,169,000 after buying an additional 2,205 shares during the period. Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its position in Graco by 13.9% during the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 3,875 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in Graco in the third quarter valued at $686,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Graco by 5.6% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 55,004 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,813,000 after acquiring an additional 2,939 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Graco Price Performance

NYSE GGG opened at $82.13 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $85.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.48. The company has a market cap of $13.81 billion, a PE ratio of 29.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.83. Graco Inc. has a 1-year low of $77.49 and a 1-year high of $94.69.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.13). Graco had a return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 23.00%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be issued a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.34%. Graco’s payout ratio is 39.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on GGG shares. BNP Paribas upgraded Graco from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, DA Davidson set a $85.00 price target on shares of Graco in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $93.00.

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.