Graco (NYSE:GGG) Shares Cross Above 200-Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $83.95 and traded as high as $84.23. Graco shares last traded at $83.77, with a volume of 354,606 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GGG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BNP Paribas raised shares of Graco from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced 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 lowered their price target on Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $79.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $92.40.

Graco Stock Down 0.4 %

The company has a market cap of $14.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a fifty day moving average of $87.02 and a 200 day moving average of $83.95.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.05). Graco had a net margin of 22.87% and a return on equity of 21.24%. The firm had revenue of $519.21 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $538.19 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.76 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Graco Inc. will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Graco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 20th will be given a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This is an increase from Graco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.87%.

Insider Transactions at Graco

In other Graco news, EVP Kathryn L. Schoenrock sold 1,527 shares of Graco stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.30, for a total transaction of $137,888.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $575,572.20. The trade was a 19.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,216 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 27,246 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,406,094.26. The trade was a 10.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 31,098 shares of company stock worth $2,776,150 in the last 90 days. 2.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Graco during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Graco by 187.8% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 495 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in Graco during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Graco in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $67,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in Graco by 60.4% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 953 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 359 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Company 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.