Meeder Asset Management Inc. Reduces Position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 83.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,366 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 47,030 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Graco were worth $789,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Graco during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Graco by 118.0% during the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service acquired a new position in Graco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Graco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in Graco by 39.1% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 484 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Graco Price Performance

Graco stock opened at $83.55 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $84.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.65. Graco Inc. has a 1-year low of $77.49 and a 1-year high of $93.25. The company has a market cap of $14.05 billion, a PE ratio of 29.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.83.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The industrial products company reported $0.64 EPS 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, equities research analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 3.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Graco Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be issued a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.32%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.01%.

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.