Robert W. Baird Has Lowered Expectations for Graco (NYSE:GGG) Stock Price

Graco (NYSE:GGG) had its price objective decreased by equities research analysts at Robert W. Baird from $96.00 to $92.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 11.81% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on GGG. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Graco in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Graco from $97.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Weiss Ratings raised Graco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Graco from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Graco in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Graco presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.50.

Graco Trading Down 3.8%

Shares of NYSE GGG opened at $82.28 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $13.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.80, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.09. Graco has a 12 month low of $78.10 and a 12 month high of $95.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $88.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.47.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last released 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 return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 22.96%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.70 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Graco will post 3.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Timothy R. White sold 1,469 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.70, for a total transaction of $133,238.30. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,664,701. The trade was a 2.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Angela F. Wordell sold 2,832 shares of Graco stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.22, for a total value of $263,999.04. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 13,360 shares in the company, valued at $1,245,419.20. This represents a 17.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 19,394 shares of company stock valued at $1,739,326 over the last three months. 2.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Graco

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GGG. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Graco by 432.6% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 85,654 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,263,000 after buying an additional 69,573 shares during the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Graco by 32.7% in the fourth quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 398,336 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,652,000 after purchasing an additional 98,141 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its stake in shares of Graco by 154.2% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 64,341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,466,000 after purchasing an additional 39,031 shares during the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG increased its position in Graco by 191.8% during the third quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 8,809 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $744,000 after acquiring an additional 5,790 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd increased its position in Graco by 40.5% during the third quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 45,544 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,869,000 after acquiring an additional 13,130 shares during the last quarter. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Graco

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.