Graco (NYSE:GGG) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Graco (NYSE:GGG) issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The industrial products company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.09), Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $492.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $536.19 million. Graco had a net margin of 23.07% and a return on equity of 24.61%. Graco’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS.

Graco Stock Down 6.8 %

Shares of GGG traded down $6.10 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $83.25. 762,383 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 655,207. Graco has a 1-year low of $68.78 and a 1-year high of $94.77. The company has a market capitalization of $14.03 billion, a PE ratio of 28.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.81. The business has a 50 day moving average of $91.23 and a 200 day moving average of $84.82.

Graco Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.255 per share. This represents a $1.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. Graco’s payout ratio is 34.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Graco from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Graco from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Graco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $84.80.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Angela F. Wordell sold 3,588 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.60, for a total transaction of $335,836.80. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 12,725 shares in the company, valued at $1,191,060. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Anthony J. Gargano sold 1,395 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.00, for a total value of $122,760.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,697 shares in the company, valued at approximately $501,336. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Angela F. Wordell sold 3,588 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.60, for a total value of $335,836.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 12,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,191,060. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 48,378 shares of company stock worth $4,376,528 over the last 90 days. 2.63% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.