PineStone Asset Management Inc. Raises Position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

PineStone Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,904,681 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 76,184 shares during the period. Graco accounts for about 2.3% of PineStone Asset Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. PineStone Asset Management Inc. owned about 1.72% of Graco worth $244,836,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in GGG. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Graco in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Graco during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in Graco during the third quarter worth approximately $59,000. MilWealth Group LLC bought a new stake in Graco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $63,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Graco during the third quarter worth approximately $67,000. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Graco news, insider Caroline M. Chambers sold 8,280 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.57, for a total transaction of $749,919.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 57,612 shares in the company, valued at $5,217,918.84. This represents a 12.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kathryn L. Schoenrock sold 1,527 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.30, for a total value of $137,888.10. Following the sale, 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. 2.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Graco Price Performance

Shares of GGG traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $87.18. 507,955 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 776,355. Graco Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.49 and a 12 month high of $94.77. The stock has a market cap of $14.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.84. The stock's 50-day moving average is $84.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.88.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 23.00%. Research analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.26%. Graco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GGG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. BNP Paribas raised Graco from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $105.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $91.50.

Graco 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.