BNP Paribas Upgrades Graco (NYSE:GGG) to “Outperform”

BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Graco (NYSE:GGG) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a report released on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $105.00 price target on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on GGG. Royal Bank of Canada lowered 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 target price on shares of 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 reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $79.00 target price on shares of Graco in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $92.40.

Graco Stock Performance

GGG opened at $84.75 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $87.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.66. Graco has a one year low of $77.49 and a one year high of $94.77. The stock has a market cap of $14.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.95, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.83.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its 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 company had revenue of $519.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $538.19 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.76 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Graco will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 20th will be paid a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This is a positive change from Graco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. Graco’s payout ratio is 38.87%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,216 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $2,406,094.26. The trade was a 10.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Caroline M. Chambers sold 8,280 shares of Graco stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.57, for a total transaction of $749,919.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,612 shares in the company, valued at $5,217,918.84. This represents a 12.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,098 shares of company stock worth $2,776,150. 2.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Graco

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GGG. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Graco in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Graco by 187.8% in 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 last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Graco by 220.9% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 690 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in Graco during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Graco during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

About Graco

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.