Novem Group Acquires 3,052 Shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Novem Group increased its stake in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 34.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,900 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,052 shares during the period. Novem Group's holdings in Graco were worth $994,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of GGG. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Graco during the fourth quarter valued at about $177,434,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Graco by 26,738.4% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,841,916 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $155,255,000 after buying an additional 1,835,053 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Graco by 36.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,929,952 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $162,676,000 after buying an additional 518,462 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its stake in Graco by 76.0% in the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,147,341 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $96,709,000 after buying an additional 495,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Graco by 48.1% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,497,164 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $126,196,000 after acquiring an additional 486,277 shares during the last quarter. 93.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Graco in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Graco currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $93.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Graco

In related news, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,588 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.23, for a total transaction of $309,393.24. Following the transaction, the insider owned 27,520 shares in the company, valued at $2,373,049.60. The trade was a 11.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 2.19% of the company's stock.

Graco Trading Up 0.3%

GGG opened at $88.79 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $14.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.06. Graco Inc. has a 12 month low of $72.06 and a 12 month high of $92.86. The business's 50-day moving average price is $84.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.79.

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

Graco Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. Graco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.87%.

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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