Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Shares Acquired by State of Alaska Department of Revenue

State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 34.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,415 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 9,883 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue's holdings in Graco were worth $3,207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Graco by 7.1% in the first quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 461,794 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $38,564,000 after purchasing an additional 30,570 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Graco by 14.1% during the 1st quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 20,624 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,722,000 after purchasing an additional 2,544 shares during the period. Optas LLC increased its stake in shares of Graco by 6.0% in the first quarter. Optas LLC now owns 3,560 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $297,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Graco by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 98,803 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $8,251,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Financial Group LLC increased its position in Graco by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 13,267 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,108,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares during the last quarter. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Graco

In other news, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,588 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.23, for a total value of $309,393.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 27,520 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,373,049.60. This represents a 11.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.19% of the company's stock.

Graco Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:GGG opened at $83.96 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $83.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $83.91. Graco Inc. has a twelve month low of $72.06 and a twelve month high of $92.86. The company has a market cap of $14.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.67, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.07.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $528.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $526.98 million. Graco had a return on equity of 19.42% and a net margin of 22.70%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.65 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 EPS for the current year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 21st. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. Graco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wolfe Research began coverage on Graco in a research report on Wednesday. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Graco has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $93.00.

Graco 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.

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