Graco Inc. $GGG Position Cut by Flossbach Von Storch SE

Key Points

• Flossbach Von Storch SE trimmed its Graco stake by 2.6% (sold 85,300 shares), leaving 3,252,150 shares worth about $266.6M — roughly 1.96% of Graco and its 28th-largest holding.
• Graco missed quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $0.66 vs. $0.75 expected and revenue of $540.1M vs. $561.4M expected, although revenue was up 2.2% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.295 (annualized $1.18, ~1.5% yield; ex-dividend Apr 13, payable May 6) while insiders sold about 19,394 shares (~$1.74M) in the last quarter.

Flossbach Von Storch SE reduced its holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,252,150 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 85,300 shares during the quarter. Graco accounts for 1.1% of Flossbach Von Storch SE's portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Flossbach Von Storch SE owned about 1.96% of Graco worth $266,579,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Graco by 432.6% in the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 85,654 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,263,000 after buying an additional 69,573 shares in the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Graco by 32.7% during the 4th quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 398,336 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,652,000 after buying an additional 98,141 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its stake in shares of Graco by 154.2% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 64,341 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,466,000 after acquiring an additional 39,031 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG lifted its stake in shares of Graco by 191.8% in the 3rd quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 8,809 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $744,000 after acquiring an additional 5,790 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Graco by 40.5% in the third quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 45,544 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,869,000 after acquiring an additional 13,130 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company's stock.

Graco Price Performance

NYSE GGG opened at $80.53 on Tuesday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $87.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.47. Graco Inc. has a 12 month low of $78.87 and a 12 month high of $95.69. The company has a market capitalization of $13.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.23, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.09.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $540.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $561.35 million. Graco had a return on equity of 18.66% and a net margin of 22.96%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.70 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 13th will be given a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 13th. Graco's dividend payout ratio is 38.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Graco

In other news, insider Timothy R. White sold 1,469 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.70, for a total transaction of $133,238.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 51,430 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,664,701. This represents a 2.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Angela F. Wordell sold 2,832 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.22, for a total value of $263,999.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,360 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,245,419.20. This trade represents a 17.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 19,394 shares of company stock worth $1,739,326. 2.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GGG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp reiterated a "sector weight" rating on shares of Graco in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Graco from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Graco in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings raised Graco from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Graco from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.25.

About Graco

Graco Inc is a leading manufacturer of fluid handling systems and components, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded in 1926, the company has built a reputation for innovation in spray finishing, lubrication, and fluid management technologies. Graco's solutions are designed to address the needs of paint and coatings applicators, general industry, and process fluids in a variety of end markets.

The company's product portfolio includes airless and air-assisted spray equipment, pumps for oil and gas applications, industrial lubrication systems, and automated dispensing equipment.

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