Arizona State Retirement System Raises Holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 49,066 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Graco were worth $4,136,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GGG. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Graco in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Graco during the third quarter worth $30,000. National Pension Service purchased a new position in shares of Graco during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Graco during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Graco during the fourth quarter worth $61,000. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Graco Price Performance

Graco stock opened at $87.60 on Friday. Graco Inc. has a 1-year low of $77.49 and a 1-year high of $94.77. The stock has a market cap of $14.85 billion, a PE ratio of 31.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.83. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $84.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $85.39.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by ($0.13). Graco had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 19.38%. On average, research analysts expect that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. Graco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas upgraded Graco from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. DA Davidson set a $85.00 price target on Graco in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Graco from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $93.00.

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.