JLB & Associates Inc. cut its position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 1.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 215,911 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 3,546 shares during the period. Graco makes up 2.5% of JLB & Associates Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. JLB & Associates Inc. owned 0.13% of Graco worth $18,031,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 461,794 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $38,564,000 after buying an additional 30,570 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Graco by 14.1% in the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 20,624 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,722,000 after acquiring an additional 2,544 shares during the period. Optas LLC increased its stake in Graco by 6.0% during 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 raised its position in Graco by 3.7% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 98,803 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $8,251,000 after purchasing an additional 3,550 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Financial Group LLC raised its position in Graco by 5.4% in the first quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 13,267 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,108,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Graco Price Performance
Shares of GGG stock traded down $0.65 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $83.96. The company had a trading volume of 1,759,139 shares, compared to its average volume of 852,117. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.03 billion, a PE ratio of 29.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.07. The company's fifty day moving average is $83.12 and its 200 day moving average is $84.00. Graco Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $72.06 and a fifty-two week high of $92.86.
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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.02. Graco had a return on equity of 19.42% and a net margin of 22.70%. The company had revenue of $528.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $526.98 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current year.
Graco Announces Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Investors 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 dividend yield of 1.31%. Graco's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.87%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Graco news, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,588 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.23, for a total transaction of $309,393.24. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,520 shares in the company, valued at $2,373,049.60. This represents a 11.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Separately, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Graco in a report on Wednesday. They set an "outperform" rating for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $93.00.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on GGG
About Graco
(
Free Report)
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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