Portfolio Design Labs LLC Purchases 2,942 Shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Portfolio Design Labs LLC increased its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG - Free Report) by 12.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 27,382 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,942 shares during the period. Portfolio Design Labs LLC's holdings in Graco were worth $2,308,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Graco by 244.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,990,742 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $174,210,000 after buying an additional 1,412,704 shares during the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Graco by 359.2% in the fourth quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 640,474 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $53,986,000 after acquiring an additional 501,003 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in Graco by 6.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,458,988 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $652,736,000 after acquiring an additional 443,141 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Graco by 142.9% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 652,048 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $57,061,000 after acquiring an additional 383,599 shares during the period. Finally, Sarasin & Partners LLP purchased a new position in Graco in the fourth quarter worth about $23,446,000. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company's stock.

Graco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GGG traded down $0.22 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $85.84. 601,270 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 798,662. The company's 50 day moving average price is $84.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.80. The firm has a market cap of $14.49 billion, a PE ratio of 30.44, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.84. Graco Inc. has a 52 week low of $77.49 and a 52 week high of $94.77.

Graco (NYSE:GGG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by ($0.13). Graco had a return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 23.00%. On average, research analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm 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 $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. Graco's payout ratio is 39.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on GGG shares. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Graco from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $91.50.

Insider Transactions at Graco

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