Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Buys 4,611 Shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 13.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 39,111 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,611 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Graco were worth $3,393,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Tobam grew its position in Graco by 2,330.8% in the 4th quarter. Tobam now owns 316 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new position in Graco in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in Graco in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in Graco by 3,063.2% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Graco by 370.7% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 626 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 493 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GGG opened at $89.35 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.81. Graco Inc. has a 1-year low of $68.78 and a 1-year high of $94.77. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $91.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.82.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $566.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $565.86 million. Graco had a return on equity of 24.61% and a net margin of 23.07%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 3.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on GGG shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Graco from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Graco from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Graco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $84.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Anthony J. Gargano sold 1,395 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.00, for a total transaction of $122,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $501,336. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Graco news, insider Christian E. Rothe sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.04, for a total value of $1,350,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 25,583 shares in the company, valued at $2,303,493.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Anthony J. Gargano sold 1,395 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.00, for a total value of $122,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,697 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $501,336. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 48,378 shares of company stock worth $4,376,528 in the last three months. 2.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.