Graco’s (GGG) “Neutral” Rating Reaffirmed at DA Davidson

Graco (NYSE:GGG)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reaffirmed by DA Davidson in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $85.00 target price on the industrial products company’s stock. DA Davidson’s price target indicates a potential downside of 3.80% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Graco from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. KeyCorp reissued a “sector weight” rating on shares of Graco in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Graco in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Graco from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $96.00 price objective on Graco in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Graco presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $96.50.

Graco Price Performance

NYSE:GGG traded up $1.03 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $88.36. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 555,167 shares, compared to its average volume of 917,770. Graco has a fifty-two week low of $72.06 and a fifty-two week high of $89.67. The firm has a market cap of $14.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $84.24 and its 200-day moving average is $83.94.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The industrial products company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.77. Graco had a net margin of 23.33% and a return on equity of 19.49%. The firm had revenue of $593.16 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $591.99 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.64 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Graco will post 3.06 EPS for the current year.

Graco announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Friday, December 5th that allows the company to buyback 15,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Graco

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Montag A & Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in Graco by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 31,442 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,577,000 after purchasing an additional 3,728 shares in the last quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Graco by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc now owns 1,112,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $91,212,000 after buying an additional 9,866 shares during the last quarter. Composition Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Graco in the 4th quarter valued at $260,000. Horizon Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Graco in the 4th quarter valued at $313,000. Finally, Danske Bank A S grew its position in shares of Graco by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Danske Bank A S now owns 127,093 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $10,418,000 after buying an additional 8,416 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

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.