Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Graco Inc. $GGG

Key Points

• Epoch Investment Partners Inc. has reduced its stake in Graco Inc. by 5.3%, now holding approximately 435,154 shares, valued at about $36.34 million.
• Graco recently reported $571.81 million in revenue for its last quarter, which was below analyst estimates, and posted a 3.4% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• Analysts have a current average target price of $94.50 for Graco, with many rating it as a "Moderate Buy."

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. reduced its stake in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 5.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 435,154 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 24,184 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned approximately 0.26% of Graco worth $36,340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Graco in the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 388 shares during the period. National Pension Service raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 299 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 448 shares during the period. Finally, USA Financial Formulas increased its stake in Graco by 43.6% during the first quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 1,057 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Graco Stock Performance

Shares of Graco stock opened at $86.77 on Wednesday. Graco Inc. has a one year low of $72.06 and a one year high of $92.86. The company has a market cap of $14.38 billion, a PE ratio of 30.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.04. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $85.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $84.21.

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

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors of record on Monday, July 21st were issued a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 21st. Graco's dividend payout ratio is 39.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports 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 note on Friday, July 25th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Graco in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Graco presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $94.50.

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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