UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Buys 36,222 Shares of Graco Inc. $GGG

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 3.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,208,598 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 36,222 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.75% of Graco worth $91,382,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Graco in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Graco by 2,650.0% in the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Essential Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Graco by 78.6% in the 1st quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 359 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Graco by 982.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 43.2% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 504 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on GGG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Graco from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 target price on Graco in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Graco from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wolfe Research downgraded Graco from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a report on Monday, July 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $95.00.

Graco Stock Down 0.6%

NYSE GGG opened at $76.94 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $78.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $81.31. Graco Inc. has a twelve month low of $72.51 and a twelve month high of $95.69. The company has a market capitalization of $12.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.20, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.92.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $590.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $608.06 million. Graco had a return on equity of 19.54% and a net margin of 23.53%.The company’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.75 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 20th were paid a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 20th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.11%.

Graco Company 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.