Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Shares Acquired by Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 3.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 90,715 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,088 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. owned about 0.05% of Graco worth $7,575,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GGG. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 118.0% during the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 351 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Graco in the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 128.9% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 689 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 388 shares in the last quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Graco during the fourth quarter worth $80,000. Finally, USA Financial Formulas grew its position in Graco by 43.6% in the 1st quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 1,057 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Transactions at Graco

In related news, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,588 shares of Graco stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 27,520 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,373,049.60. This trade represents a 11.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.19% of the company's stock.

Graco Price Performance

Shares of GGG stock traded up $1.27 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $87.74. The stock had a trading volume of 749,548 shares, compared to its average volume of 798,279. Graco Inc. has a one year low of $72.06 and a one year high of $92.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.01, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.06. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $85.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $83.97.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. Graco had a return on equity of 19.42% and a net margin of 22.70%. The firm had revenue of $528.28 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $526.98 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.65 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 21st. Graco's payout ratio is 38.87%.

About Graco

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.