Mark Sheahan, President and CEO at Graco (GGG), recently added 1,263 shares. The buy increased his holdings by 2 percent, and came to a total cost of $99,828.
This marks the first insider buy at the company in the past two years. Graco has had about two dozen insider sales in that timeframe, all following the exercise of company stock options. The sales have mostly been near where shares current trade, or at higher prices.
Overall, company insiders own 0.8 percent of shares.
The specialty machinery producer has performed about in-line with the S&P 500 over the past year. And shares are valued slightly higher than the overall market, at 27 times current and forward earnings.
The company’s products include unique systems, such as machines for applying paint coats to roads and parking lots, which gives it a niche.
Action to take: Investors may like shares at current prices or lower. The stock has started to pull back in recent sessions, and may soon go for under $75. Graco has started paying a dividend, with a 1.2 percent yield at current prices.
For traders, shares are likely to trend higher after hitting their long-term trendline in the mid $70 range. That would be ideal for a call option trade such as the February 2024 $85 calls. Last carrying a bid/ask spread of about $3.25, traders may want to look at buying under $3 to play an end-year rally.
Disclosure: The author of this article has no position in the company mentioned here, but may trade after the next 72 hours. The author receives no compensation from any of the companies mentioned in this article.