Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Insider Sells $749,919.60 in Stock

Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) insider Caroline M. Chambers sold 8,280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.57, for a total transaction of $749,919.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 57,612 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,217,918.84. This trade represents a 12.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Graco Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE GGG opened at $89.11 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $15.05 billion, a PE ratio of 31.93, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.83. Graco Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.49 and a 12 month high of $94.77. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $86.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.16.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $519.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $538.19 million. Graco had a return on equity of 21.24% and a net margin of 22.87%. Graco’s revenue was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.76 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Graco Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st were given a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GGG. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 target price on shares of Graco in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Graco from $96.00 to $93.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Graco presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Graco

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Gradient Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Graco during the second quarter worth $27,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Graco in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of Graco by 187.8% during 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 last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Graco by 220.9% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 690 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new position in Graco in the third quarter valued at about $59,000. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

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.