Ascent Group LLC Acquires 20,849 Shares of Graco Inc. $GGG

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC has significantly increased its stake in Graco Inc. by 112.5% during the first quarter, owning 39,389 shares worth approximately $3.29 million.
• Graco reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, falling short of analysts' expectations of $0.78, while revenue increased by 3.4% year-over-year.
• Institutional investors currently own 93.88% of Graco's stock, with multiple firms like Goldman Sachs and Nippon Life Global Investors increasing their positions in the first quarter.

Ascent Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 112.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 39,389 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 20,849 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Graco were worth $3,289,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of GGG. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Graco in the first quarter worth $41,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Graco in the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Graco by 128.9% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 689 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 388 shares during the period. National Pension Service boosted its holdings in Graco by 74.8% in the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 699 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in Graco by 92.6% during the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 932 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company's stock.

Graco Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of GGG traded down $1.60 on Friday, reaching $84.46. 555,755 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 578,658. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $85.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $84.13. The stock has a market cap of $13.99 billion, a PE ratio of 29.95, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.03. Graco Inc. has a 52-week low of $72.06 and a 52-week high of $92.86.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on GGG shares. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Graco from $88.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Graco in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.