FY2024 Earnings Forecast for Graco Issued By Zacks Research

Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research decreased their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Graco in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, November 13th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the industrial products company will post earnings of $2.91 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $2.96. The consensus estimate for Graco’s current full-year earnings is $2.92 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Graco’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.78 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.67 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.82 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $0.70 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.90 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $3.30 EPS.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on GGG. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Graco from $88.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Graco from $96.00 to $93.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 target price on shares of Graco in a report on Friday, September 27th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Graco presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.25.

Graco Price Performance

NYSE:GGG opened at $89.62 on Friday. Graco has a 1-year low of $77.49 and a 1-year high of $94.77. The company has a market capitalization of $15.13 billion, a PE ratio of 31.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.82. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $85.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.45.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $519.21 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $538.19 million. Graco had a net margin of 22.87% and a return on equity of 21.24%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.76 earnings per share.

Graco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Investors of record on Monday, October 21st were given a $0.255 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, October 21st. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.14%. Graco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Graco

In other news, insider David J. Thompson sold 3,216 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.31, for a total transaction of $284,004.96. Following the sale, the insider now owns 27,246 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,406,094.26. This trade represents a 10.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Gradient Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Graco during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Graco during the third quarter valued at $30,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new position in Graco in the first quarter valued at about $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Graco by 187.8% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 495 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Graco by 220.9% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 690 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.88% of the company’s stock.

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.