GSA Capital Partners LLP Takes Position in Graco Inc. $GGG

GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 11,900 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $900,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Graco during the first quarter worth $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its position in Graco by 2,650.0% during the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 318 shares during the last quarter. Essential Partners LLC grew its stake in Graco by 78.6% during the 1st quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 359 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Graco by 2,540.0% in the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 528 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Field & Main Bank purchased a new position in Graco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GGG opened at $81.09 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $77.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.10. Graco Inc. has a 1 year low of $72.51 and a 1 year high of $95.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.13 billion, a PE ratio of 25.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.92.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.91 earnings per share 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 net margin of 23.53% and a return on equity of 19.54%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.75 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 20th were paid a $0.295 dividend. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 20th. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on GGG. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 price target on Graco in a report on Friday, July 24th. Wolfe Research lowered Graco from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 target price on shares of Graco in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Graco from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Graco from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Graco has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $95.00.

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.