Bayforest Capital Ltd Raises Stock Position in Graco Inc. $GGG

Key Points

• Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its stake in Graco Inc. by 910.1% during the 1st quarter, holding a total of 6,788 shares valued at approximately $567,000.
• Analysts have given Graco an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target of $94.50, influenced by recent upgrades from Wolfe Research and Robert W. Baird.
• Graco reported a miss in earnings for the last quarter with an EPS of $0.75, falling short of expectations and showing a revenue decline compared to analyst estimates.

Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 910.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,788 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,116 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd's holdings in Graco were worth $567,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Graco in the 1st quarter valued at about $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 lifted its position in Graco by 128.9% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 689 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service lifted its position in Graco by 74.8% in the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 699 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in Graco by 92.6% in 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 during the last quarter. 93.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Graco in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Graco from $88.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $94.50.

Graco Stock Down 1.4%

GGG stock opened at $84.74 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $85.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $84.16. The company has a market capitalization of $14.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.03. Graco Inc. has a 12 month low of $72.06 and a 12 month high of $92.86.

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

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.

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