DNB Asset Management AS Purchases 36,082 Shares of Graco Inc. $GGG

DNB Asset Management AS lifted its position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 72.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 85,696 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 36,082 shares during the quarter. DNB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Graco were worth $7,025,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GGG. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Graco by 15.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 330,409 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,592,000 after acquiring an additional 44,573 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Graco by 982.6% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Graco by 97.2% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,765 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $152,000 after buying an additional 870 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in Graco by 559.5% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 108,100 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,293,000 after buying an additional 91,708 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in Graco by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 21,289 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,830,000 after buying an additional 852 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on GGG shares. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Graco from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Graco in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Graco from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Graco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Three investment 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, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $94.25.

Insider Activity at Graco

In other Graco news, Director Andrea Helen Simon bought 1,240 shares of Graco stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $80.53 per share, with a total value of $99,857.20. Following the acquisition, the director owned 1,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $99,857.20. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.18% of the company’s stock.

Graco Stock Up 0.8%

GGG stock opened at $76.29 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $12.66 billion, a PE ratio of 24.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.96. The business has a 50 day moving average of $83.73 and a 200 day moving average of $85.12. Graco Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.57 and a twelve month high of $95.69.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $540.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $561.35 million. Graco had a return on equity of 18.66% and a net margin of 22.96%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.70 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Company Profile

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.