Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Boosts Holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 55.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,947 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 4,277 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund's holdings in Graco were worth $1,007,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Graco in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Graco during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Graco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $61,000. MilWealth Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graco in the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Graco by 93.1% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 956 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 461 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company's stock.

Graco Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE:GGG traded up $0.62 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $86.21. 549,978 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 808,239. The company has a market cap of $14.61 billion, a PE ratio of 30.57, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.84. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $84.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.30. Graco Inc. has a one year low of $77.49 and a one year high of $94.77.

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Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Graco Inc. 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 dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. Graco's payout ratio is 39.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on GGG shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. DA Davidson set a $85.00 price objective on Graco in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Graco from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $105.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Graco presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $93.00.

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.