Dearborn Partners LLC Cuts Position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Dearborn Partners LLC lessened its position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 6.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,659 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 172 shares during the quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC’s holdings in Graco were worth $233,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GGG. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graco in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new stake in Graco in the first quarter worth $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Graco by 187.8% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 495 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 323 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Graco by 220.9% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 690 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Graco in the third quarter worth about $59,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Stock Performance

NYSE GGG opened at $89.62 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $15.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.82. Graco Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $77.49 and a fifty-two week high of $94.77. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $85.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.45.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $519.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $538.19 million. Graco had a return on equity of 21.24% and a net margin of 22.87%. The business’s revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.76 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Graco Inc. will post 2.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were given a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 21st. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on GGG shares. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Graco from $96.00 to $93.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $79.00 price target on shares of Graco in a report on Friday, September 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Graco currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,216 shares of Graco stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.31, for a total transaction of $284,004.96. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,246 shares in the company, valued at $2,406,094.26. The trade was a 10.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Graco Profile

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.