Gorman-Rupp (NYSE:GRC) Stock Breaks Above Fifty Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Gorman-Rupp Company (The) (NYSE:GRC) crossed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $74.80 and traded as high as $75.84. Gorman-Rupp shares last traded at $74.83, with a volume of 149,229 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GRC. Zacks Research downgraded Gorman-Rupp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered Gorman-Rupp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Gorman-Rupp in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

Gorman-Rupp Trading Up 1.5%

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $74.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.98 billion, a PE ratio of 26.73, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.32.

Gorman-Rupp (NYSE:GRC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.16. Gorman-Rupp had a return on equity of 17.47% and a net margin of 10.20%. The company had revenue of $193.25 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $181.55 million. Analysts expect that Gorman-Rupp Company will post 2.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gorman-Rupp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. This is a positive change from Gorman-Rupp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Gorman-Rupp’s payout ratio is currently 27.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gorman-Rupp

In related news, VP D. Patrick Wischmeier sold 5,153 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.62, for a total transaction of $399,975.86. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,409 shares in the company, valued at $109,366.58. The trade was a 78.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 11.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Gorman-Rupp by 14.4% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 140,446 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $12,885,000 after acquiring an additional 17,722 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Gorman-Rupp in the first quarter valued at $923,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Gorman-Rupp by 326.1% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 524,400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,581,000 after buying an additional 401,340 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Gorman-Rupp by 1,056.7% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 302,230 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $18,778,000 after buying an additional 276,101 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Gorman-Rupp during the second quarter worth about $2,154,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 59.26% of the company’s stock.

About Gorman-Rupp

Gorman-Rupp Co designs, manufactures and sells pumps and pumping systems for moving water and other liquids. Its product portfolio includes self-priming centrifugal pumps, standard centrifugal pumps, submersible pumps, rotary gear pumps, diaphragm pumps and related pumping equipment.

The company serves a range of markets, including municipal water and wastewater treatment, construction, agriculture, industrial operations, petroleum, fire protection and emergency services. Its products are used in applications such as sewage handling, flood control, dewatering, irrigation and general fluid transfer.

Founded in 1933 by J.C.