Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Buys 9,739 Shares of Graco Inc. $GGG

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 30.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 41,615 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 9,739 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Graco were worth $3,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of GGG. AE Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Graco by 32.7% during the fourth quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 398,336 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,652,000 after purchasing an additional 98,141 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank raised its holdings in Graco by 54.1% in the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 172,328 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,126,000 after buying an additional 60,486 shares during the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd raised its holdings in Graco by 40.5% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 45,544 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,869,000 after buying an additional 13,130 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Graco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,527,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Graco by 20,706.4% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 556,362 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,605,000 after buying an additional 553,688 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Graco

In other news, Director Andrea Helen Simon purchased 1,240 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $80.53 per share, for a total transaction of $99,857.20. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 1,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $99,857.20. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.18% of the company’s stock.

Graco Stock Performance

Shares of GGG opened at $74.61 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $12.38 billion, a PE ratio of 24.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.93. Graco Inc. has a 52-week low of $72.51 and a 52-week high of $95.69. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $75.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $82.90.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.75 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $540.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $561.35 million. Graco had a net margin of 22.96% and a return on equity of 18.66%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.70 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 20th. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is 38.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on GGG. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Graco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $92.00 price target (down from $95.00) on shares of Graco in a report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Graco from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered Graco from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Graco presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $93.50.

About Graco

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.