Confluence Investment Management LLC Has $41.52 Million Stake in Graco Inc. $GGG

Confluence Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 6.3% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 549,102 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 36,612 shares during the quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Graco were worth $41,518,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in GGG. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in Graco by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 21,277 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,745,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Graco by 0.3% in the second quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC now owns 41,431 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,562,000 after buying an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Graco by 5.2% during the second quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,723 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $234,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,813 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $231,000 after buying an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Graco by 43.2% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 504 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Graco Stock Up 1.1%

Graco stock opened at $80.23 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $12.99 billion, a PE ratio of 25.23, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.93. Graco Inc. has a 12-month low of $72.51 and a 12-month high of $95.69. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $75.67 and its 200 day moving average is $82.46.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $590.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $608.06 million. Graco had a return on equity of 19.54% and a net margin of 23.53%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.75 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.295 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Graco’s payout ratio is 37.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on GGG shares. Weiss Ratings lowered Graco from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Graco in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Graco from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 price target on shares of Graco in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered Graco from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $95.00.

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.