Bank of Nova Scotia Sells 2,256 Shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Bank of Nova Scotia cut its holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 27.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,944 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,256 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Graco were worth $501,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graco during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Graco by 118.0% in the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service bought a new stake in Graco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Graco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group grew its holdings in Graco by 39.1% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 484 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. 93.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on GGG. DA Davidson set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a report on Friday, January 31st. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Graco from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $93.00.

Graco Price Performance

NYSE:GGG opened at $79.70 on Tuesday. Graco Inc. has a one year low of $72.06 and a one year high of $92.86. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $83.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $85.10. The stock has a market cap of $13.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.26, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.92.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by ($0.13). Graco had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 19.38%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be given a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio 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.