Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Shares Acquired by Mariner LLC

Mariner LLC raised its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 10.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 71,415 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,691 shares during the period. Mariner LLC's holdings in Graco were worth $6,020,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Graco in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Graco by 118.0% during the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 351 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. National Pension Service acquired a new stake in shares of Graco in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Graco in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 136 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on GGG shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price 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 objective on shares of Graco in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Graco has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $93.00.

Graco Stock Up 1.8 %

NYSE GGG traded up $1.41 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $80.38. 1,457,902 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 819,377. The firm has a market cap of $13.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.50, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a 50 day moving average of $82.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $84.73. Graco Inc. has a 52-week low of $72.06 and a 52-week high of $92.86.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.02. Graco had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 19.38%. The firm had revenue of $528.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $526.98 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 EPS for the current year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be given a dividend of $0.275 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Graco's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.