Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Sells 29,378 Shares of Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC trimmed its position in Graco Inc. (NYSE:GGG) by 32.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 62,238 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 29,378 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Graco were worth $5,446,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Gradient Investments LLC bought a new stake in Graco during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new stake in Graco in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $43,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Graco by 187.8% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 495 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 323 shares during the period. Tobam increased its position in Graco by 90.2% in the 1st quarter. Tobam now owns 601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of Graco during the third quarter worth approximately $59,000. 93.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Graco Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE GGG opened at $81.60 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.14, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.81. Graco Inc. has a one year low of $73.03 and a one year high of $94.77. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $83.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $82.45.

Graco (NYSE:GGG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The industrial products company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by ($0.05). Graco had a net margin of 23.16% and a return on equity of 22.40%. The business had revenue of $519.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $538.19 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.76 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Graco Inc. will post 2.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Graco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 21st. Graco’s payout ratio is 35.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GGG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $79.00 price objective on shares of Graco in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Graco from $96.00 to $93.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped 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. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Graco currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $89.25.

Graco Company Profile

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.