Ascent Group LLC Grows Position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Ascent Group LLC raised its stake in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,540 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,092 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Graco were worth $1,563,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GGG. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Graco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its stake in Graco by 118.0% in the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service purchased a new position in Graco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Graco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Graco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Graco Trading Down 1.1%

GGG stock opened at $83.63 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.66, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.09. Graco Inc. has a twelve month low of $72.06 and a twelve month high of $92.86. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $81.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $84.61.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $528.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $526.98 million. Graco had a return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 23.00%. The company’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,588 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.23, for a total transaction of $309,393.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,520 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,373,049.60. This trade represents a 11.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, DA Davidson set a $85.00 price target on shares of Graco in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Graco currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $93.00.

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.