Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Shares Sold by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 366,021 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,046 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.22% of Graco worth $30,852,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of GGG. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Graco in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Graco by 187.8% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 495 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the period. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of Graco during the third quarter valued at approximately $59,000. MilWealth Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Graco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Graco during the third quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Caroline M. Chambers sold 8,280 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.57, for a total value of $749,919.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,612 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,217,918.84. This represents a 12.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kathryn L. Schoenrock sold 1,527 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.30, for a total value of $137,888.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $575,572.20. The trade was a 19.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 27,882 shares of company stock worth $2,492,145. Company insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GGG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Graco from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $91.50.

Graco Stock Performance

NYSE:GGG opened at $84.64 on Thursday. Graco Inc. has a one year low of $77.49 and a one year high of $94.77. The stock has a market cap of $14.29 billion, a PE ratio of 30.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $85.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.69.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.13). Graco had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 19.38%. As a group, analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 5th. Investors of record on Monday, January 20th were issued a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This is a boost from Graco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.01%.

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.