Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) Shares Bought by M&T Bank Corp

M&T Bank Corp increased its position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 43,199 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 342 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Graco were worth $3,747,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tobam raised its stake in Graco by 2,330.8% during the 4th quarter. Tobam now owns 316 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Graco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Graco during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in Graco by 3,063.2% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Graco by 370.7% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 626 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 493 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on GGG. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Graco from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered Graco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. William Blair reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Graco in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Graco from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Graco from $90.00 to $87.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $88.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Timothy R. White sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.82, for a total value of $232,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 48,282 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,481,535.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Timothy R. White sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.82, for a total value of $232,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 48,282 shares in the company, valued at $4,481,535.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Angela F. Wordell sold 3,588 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.60, for a total value of $335,836.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 12,725 shares in the company, valued at $1,191,060. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 45,483 shares of company stock valued at $4,123,245 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Graco Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE:GGG opened at $83.51 on Wednesday. Graco Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.78 and a twelve month high of $94.77. The company has a market capitalization of $14.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $89.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.46.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The industrial products company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.09). Graco had a net margin of 23.15% and a return on equity of 23.01%. The company had revenue of $492.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $536.19 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.74 EPS. Graco’s quarterly revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th were issued a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.22%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.17%.

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.