WCM Investment Management LLC Has $2.95 Million Stock Position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

WCM Investment Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 35,180 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,968 shares during the quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Graco were worth $2,947,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Graco by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,279 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,035,000 after purchasing an additional 878 shares during the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Graco by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 28,756 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,424,000 after buying an additional 11,060 shares during the period. Harvey Investment Co. LLC raised its stake in shares of Graco by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Harvey Investment Co. LLC now owns 37,580 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,168,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Graco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its stake in Graco by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 339,524 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,618,000 after acquiring an additional 11,218 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE GGG opened at $85.88 on Tuesday. Graco Inc. has a twelve month low of $77.49 and a twelve month high of $94.77. The stock has a market cap of $14.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s fifty day moving average is $85.22 and its 200-day moving average is $84.76.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.13). Graco had a return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 23.00%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 5th. Investors of record on Monday, January 20th were given a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This is a positive change from Graco’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. Graco’s payout ratio is currently 39.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on GGG shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. BNP Paribas upgraded Graco from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $91.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kathryn L. Schoenrock sold 1,527 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.30, for a total value of $137,888.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $575,572.20. This represents a 19.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Caroline M. Chambers sold 8,280 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.57, for a total value of $749,919.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 57,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,217,918.84. This trade represents a 12.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 27,882 shares of company stock valued at $2,492,145. 2.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.