AQR Capital Management LLC Purchases 16,098 Shares of Graco Inc. $GGG

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Graco Inc. by 5.0% during the first quarter, owning 339,021 shares worth $27.96 million.
• Graco's stock rose by 1.5%, reaching $86.10, with a market capitalization of $14.27 billion and a PE ratio of 30.53.
• Graco reported a net margin of 22.26% and earnings of $0.75 per share for the latest quarter, missing estimates, while analysts predict an EPS of 3.06 for the fiscal year.

AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 5.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 339,021 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 16,098 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.20% of Graco worth $27,956,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Amundi boosted its position in Graco by 7.2% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 1,797,477 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $144,194,000 after purchasing an additional 120,875 shares during the period. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. boosted its position in Graco by 10.0% during the first quarter. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. now owns 115,497 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $9,645,000 after purchasing an additional 10,533 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Graco by 5.2% during the first quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 5,063 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $423,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new position in Graco during the first quarter worth $3,750,000. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC bought a new position in Graco during the first quarter worth $41,000. 93.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Graco Price Performance

GGG traded down $1.60 on Friday, hitting $84.46. 555,755 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 575,786. Graco Inc. has a 12 month low of $72.06 and a 12 month high of $92.86. The business has a 50-day moving average of $85.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $84.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.95, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.03.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.03). Graco had a return on equity of 19.05% and a net margin of 22.26%.The firm had revenue of $571.81 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $590.57 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.77 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GGG shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Graco from $88.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Graco in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.50.

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.