VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Buys Shares of 294,200 Graco Inc. $GGG

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 294,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,244,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al owned 0.18% of Graco as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of GGG. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graco during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Graco by 2,650.0% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Essential Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Graco by 78.6% during the first quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 359 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Graco by 2,540.0% during the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 528 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in Graco by 982.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Graco stock opened at $77.93 on Tuesday. Graco Inc. has a 12 month low of $72.51 and a 12 month high of $95.69. The stock has a market cap of $12.62 billion, a PE ratio of 24.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.92. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $80.84.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.10. Graco had a return on equity of 19.54% and a net margin of 23.53%.The company had revenue of $590.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $608.06 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.75 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 20th were paid a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 20th. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Graco’s payout ratio is 37.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GGG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Graco from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a report on Monday, July 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Graco from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $94.00 target price on Graco in a report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Graco from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $95.00.

Graco Profile

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.