Graco (NYSE:GGG) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $89.70 and last traded at $88.8460, with a volume of 213718 shares. The stock had previously closed at $88.48.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GGG has been the topic of several analyst reports. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Graco in a report on Monday. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Graco in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Graco in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Graco from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $96.00 price target on Graco in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Graco has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $96.50.

Graco Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $14.64 billion, a PE ratio of 28.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.08. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $84.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $83.94.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.77. The firm had revenue of $593.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $591.99 million. Graco had a net margin of 23.33% and a return on equity of 19.49%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. Research analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 19th will be given a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. This is a positive change from Graco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is 38.19%.

Graco announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Friday, December 5th that allows the company to repurchase 15,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Graco

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Graco by 1.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,571,060 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $643,237,000 after purchasing an additional 99,097 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Graco by 3.2% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,458,857 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $208,908,000 after acquiring an additional 75,285 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its position in shares of Graco by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,076,887 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $176,016,000 after acquiring an additional 53,126 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Graco during the second quarter valued at $170,661,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Graco by 0.8% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,865,673 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $158,508,000 after buying an additional 14,764 shares during the period. 93.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Graco

Graco Inc is a leading manufacturer of fluid handling systems and components, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded in 1926, the company has built a reputation for innovation in spray finishing, lubrication, and fluid management technologies. Graco’s solutions are designed to address the needs of paint and coatings applicators, general industry, and process fluids in a variety of end markets.

The company’s product portfolio includes airless and air-assisted spray equipment, pumps for oil and gas applications, industrial lubrication systems, and automated dispensing equipment.