Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Shares Sold by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lessened its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 32.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 99,307 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 48,295 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned about 0.06% of Graco worth $8,690,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of GGG. M&G Plc increased its position in Graco by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. M&G Plc now owns 483,535 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $38,199,000 after purchasing an additional 9,673 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Graco by 254.8% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 195,533 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $17,111,000 after buying an additional 140,417 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Graco by 2.7% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 328,306 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $28,730,000 after buying an additional 8,485 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its position in Graco by 25.8% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 31,991 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,800,000 after acquiring an additional 6,571 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Graco in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $876,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company's stock.

Graco Stock Performance

Shares of GGG stock traded up $0.29 on Tuesday, hitting $91.00. The stock had a trading volume of 285,437 shares, compared to its average volume of 747,414. Graco Inc. has a 52-week low of $77.49 and a 52-week high of $94.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.83. The stock's 50 day moving average is $86.62 and its 200-day moving average is $83.05.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.05). Graco had a return on equity of 21.24% and a net margin of 22.87%. The business had revenue of $519.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $538.19 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. The company's revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were paid a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 21st. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.12%. Graco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on GGG. DA Davidson restated a "neutral" rating and set a $79.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a report on Friday, September 27th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Graco from $96.00 to $93.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Graco presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $89.25.

Insider Activity at Graco

In other Graco news, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,216 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.31, for a total transaction of $284,004.96. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,406,094.26. This represents a 10.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Peter J. O'shea sold 18,075 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.76, for a total value of $1,604,337.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 14,516 shares in the company, valued at $1,288,440.16. The trade was a 55.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 22,818 shares of company stock valued at $2,026,230 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.63% 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.