North Point Portfolio Managers Corp OH Sells 14,985 Shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

North Point Portfolio Managers Corp OH trimmed its position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 8.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 169,063 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 14,985 shares during the period. Graco accounts for approximately 2.7% of North Point Portfolio Managers Corp OH's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. North Point Portfolio Managers Corp OH owned 0.10% of Graco worth $14,668,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of GGG. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Graco by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,794 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $322,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in Graco by 5.5% in the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,004 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $219,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Graco by 0.9% in the third quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC now owns 18,734 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,365,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC increased its holdings in Graco by 3.0% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 6,270 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $437,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Finally, Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Graco by 0.5% in the second quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC now owns 40,854 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,528,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Graco

In related news, CEO Mark W. Sheahan sold 12,884 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.37, for a total value of $1,074,139.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 93,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,768,583.34. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Mark W. Sheahan sold 12,884 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.37, for a total value of $1,074,139.08. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 93,182 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,768,583.34. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jody H. Feragen sold 5,036 shares of Graco stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.29, for a total transaction of $464,772.44. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 44,903 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,144,097.87. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 61,262 shares of company stock valued at $5,450,667. 2.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Graco Price Performance

Shares of GGG traded up $0.28 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $92.11. The stock had a trading volume of 451,235 shares, compared to its average volume of 669,136. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $83.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.81. Graco Inc. has a 1-year low of $68.76 and a 1-year high of $94.77.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.01. Graco had a return on equity of 24.61% and a net margin of 23.07%. The company had revenue of $566.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $565.86 million. Equities analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. Graco's payout ratio is 34.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Graco from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. StockNews.com upgraded Graco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Graco from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $84.80.

Graco Company 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.