6,351 Shares in Graco Inc. $GGG Bought by NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC bought a new stake in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 6,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $498,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Graco in the second quarter valued at $1,396,470,000. Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Graco by 7.5% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 2,090,184 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $158,039,000 after purchasing an additional 146,032 shares during the last quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec purchased a new position in shares of Graco during the second quarter worth about $141,667,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Graco by 4.2% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,535,923 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $130,016,000 after purchasing an additional 61,706 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Graco during the second quarter worth about $100,157,000. 93.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GGG has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings raised Graco from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 price target on Graco in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Wolfe Research lowered Graco from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on Graco from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a report on Monday, July 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Graco currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $94.75.

Graco Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE GGG traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $82.06. 1,191,897 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,655,939. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $78.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.63. Graco Inc. has a 1-year low of $72.51 and a 1-year high of $95.69. The firm has a market cap of $13.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.89.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $590.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $608.06 million. Graco had a net margin of 23.53% and a return on equity of 19.54%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.75 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 3.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 19th will be given a dividend of $0.2950 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 19th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Graco’s payout ratio is presently 37.11%.

About Graco

Graco Inc is a Minneapolis-based manufacturer of equipment used to manage, measure, control and apply fluids and coatings. Its products are used in industrial, commercial and residential applications, including fluid handling, lubrication, dispensing, sealing, bonding, painting and corrosion protection.

The company’s product portfolio includes pumps, valves, meters, regulators, controls, proportioning systems and spray equipment. Graco also supplies equipment for paint and texture application, protective coatings, sealants and adhesives, vehicle servicing, and the automated lubrication of machinery.