PineStone Asset Management Inc. Sells 13,327 Shares of Graco Inc. $GGG

Key Points

• PineStone Asset Management trimmed its Graco stake by 0.4% in Q4, selling 13,327 shares and now holds 3,788,983 shares (about 2.29% of Graco) valued at roughly $310.6 million, making GGG its 19th-largest position.
• Graco is returning capital to shareholders — the board authorized a 15,000,000-share buyback and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.295 (annualized $1.18, yield ~1.4%; ex-dividend April 13) — while recent quarterly results met EPS estimates and showed revenue up 8.1% year‑over‑year.

PineStone Asset Management Inc. cut its stake in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,788,983 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 13,327 shares during the period. Graco accounts for about 1.9% of PineStone Asset Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. PineStone Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 2.29% of Graco worth $310,583,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 15.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 330,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,592,000 after purchasing an additional 44,573 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Graco by 982.6% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 498 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in Graco by 122.0% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 33,236 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,959,000 after buying an additional 18,262 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Graco by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 173,363 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $14,904,000 after buying an additional 1,443 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Fund Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of Graco by 20.8% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Fund Management S.A. now owns 53,362 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,588,000 after buying an additional 9,205 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Graco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GGG opened at $84.70 on Wednesday. Graco Inc. has a 52-week low of $72.06 and a 52-week high of $95.69. The stock has a market cap of $14.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $89.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $85.31.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.77. The company had revenue of $593.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $591.99 million. Graco had a net margin of 23.33% and a return on equity of 19.49%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.64 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 6th. Investors of record on Monday, April 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 13th. Graco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.19%.

Graco announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Friday, December 5th that allows the company to buyback 15,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on GGG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Graco from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. KeyCorp reiterated a "sector weight" rating on shares of Graco in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Graco from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Robert W. Baird set a $96.00 target price on shares of Graco in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Graco in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $96.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Graco news, insider Timothy R. White sold 1,469 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.70, for a total value of $133,238.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 51,430 shares in the company, valued at $4,664,701. This represents a 2.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn L. Schoenrock sold 2,223 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.06, for a total value of $195,757.38. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 7,846 shares in the company, valued at approximately $690,918.76. This represents a 22.08% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 19,394 shares of company stock valued at $1,739,326. Insiders own 2.18% of the company's stock.

Graco Profile

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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