Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Hold" by the five ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $93.00.

GGG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. DA Davidson set a $85.00 price target on shares of Graco in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Graco from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $105.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Graco

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. raised its position in Graco by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. now owns 4,860 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $410,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. lifted its position in shares of Graco by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 27,923 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,354,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Optas LLC increased its position in Graco by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Optas LLC now owns 3,360 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $283,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in Graco by 39.1% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 484 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC grew its holdings in shares of Graco by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 14,548 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,226,000 after buying an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company's stock.

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Graco Price Performance

GGG traded down $0.71 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $78.52. The company's stock had a trading volume of 74,081 shares, compared to its average volume of 871,610. The business's 50-day moving average is $83.45 and its 200-day moving average is $85.06. The stock has a market cap of $13.20 billion, a PE ratio of 27.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.92. Graco has a fifty-two week low of $72.06 and a fifty-two week high of $92.86.

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

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. Graco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.01%.

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.