AE Wealth Management LLC Raises Stake in Graco Inc. $GGG

AE Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 17.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 300,195 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 44,418 shares during the quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Graco were worth $25,505,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graco in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Graco by 320.7% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 345 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 316.7% during the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 475 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Graco by 982.6% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Graco by 116.9% in the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 514 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Graco from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird set a $96.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Graco from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Graco in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp restated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Graco in a research note on Tuesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Graco presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $96.50.

Graco Stock Performance

Graco stock opened at $87.54 on Friday. Graco Inc. has a one year low of $72.06 and a one year high of $89.67. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $84.14 and a 200 day moving average of $83.97. The stock has a market cap of $14.51 billion, a PE ratio of 28.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.09.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77. Graco had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 23.33%.The business had revenue of $593.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $591.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.64 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Friday, December 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase 15,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Graco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 19th will be given a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 16th. This is a boost from Graco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Graco’s payout ratio is 38.19%.

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.