Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Receives $91.50 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Hold" from the five ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $91.50.

GGG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Graco from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $105.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of 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 increased their price objective on shares of Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd.

Graco Price Performance

GGG traded down $1.57 during trading on Thursday, reaching $85.68. 334,977 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 753,346. Graco has a 1 year low of $77.49 and a 1 year high of $94.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.84. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $84.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.89.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.13). Graco had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 19.38%. Equities analysts forecast that Graco will post 3.06 EPS for the current year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be given a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.28%. Graco's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.01%.

Insider Activity at Graco

In other news, insider Caroline M. Chambers sold 8,280 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.57, for a total value of $749,919.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 57,612 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,217,918.84. This represents a 12.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn L. Schoenrock sold 1,527 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.30, for a total transaction of $137,888.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,374 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $575,572.20. This represents a 19.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.63% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Graco

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Creative Planning boosted its stake in shares of Graco by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 81,543 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $7,136,000 after purchasing an additional 4,514 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Graco by 165.1% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,829 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $160,000 after buying an additional 1,139 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Graco by 48.5% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,106 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Graco in the third quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Narwhal Capital Management lifted its position in shares of Graco by 29.0% in the third quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 92,313 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $8,078,000 after purchasing an additional 20,728 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company's stock.

About Graco

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.