Graco (NYSE:GGG) Hits New 12-Month Low – Should You Sell?

Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) reached a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $73.14 and last traded at $73.3480, with a volume of 215147 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $75.20.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Graco in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Graco from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Graco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Graco has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.25.

Graco Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $76.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.42. The stock has a market cap of $12.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.93.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.75 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $540.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $561.35 million. Graco had a net margin of 22.96% and a return on equity of 18.66%. Graco’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.70 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 20th will be issued a $0.295 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Graco

In other Graco news, Director Andrea Helen Simon purchased 1,240 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $80.53 per share, with a total value of $99,857.20. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 1,240 shares in the company, valued at $99,857.20. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Graco

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Graco during the 4th quarter valued at $161,949,000. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of Graco by 1,636.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,011,196 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $82,888,000 after buying an additional 952,977 shares during the last quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec boosted its stake in shares of Graco by 236.4% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 1,279,553 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $108,711,000 after buying an additional 899,174 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of Graco by 20,706.4% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 556,362 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,605,000 after acquiring an additional 553,688 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of Graco by 80.6% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 954,347 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $80,785,000 after acquiring an additional 426,001 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Graco Company 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.