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Graco's Earnings Miss Estimates in Q3, Sales Decline 4% Y/Y

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Graco Inc.’s (GGG - Free Report) third-quarter 2024 adjusted earnings of 71 cents per share missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 76 cents. The bottom line declined 8% year over year.

The company’s net sales of $519.2 million missed the consensus estimate of $535 million. The top line fell 4% year over year due to lower demand in all the segments.

On a regional basis, quarterly sales generated from the Americas increased 1% year over year. In Europe, the Middle East and Africa, sales decreased 2% year over year. Sales from the Asia Pacific decreased 21% year over year.

Stay up-to-date with all quarterly releases: See Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Segmental Details of Graco

Net sales in the Industrial segment totaled $156.3 million (contributing to 30.1% of the quarter’s sales), which decreased 1% year over year. Forex woes lowered sales by 1% year over year. Our estimate for segmental net sales was $191.8 million.

Net sales in the Process segment grossed $120.6 million (contributing to 23.2% of the quarter’s sales), down 12% year over year. Our estimate for the segment’s net sales was $131.6 million. Core sales declined 12% year over year.

Net sales in the Contractor segment totaled $242.3 million (contributing to 46.7% of the quarter’s sales), down 1% year over year. Our estimate for segmental net sales was $236.5 million. Core sales increased 1%.

Graco Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Graco Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Graco Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Graco Inc. Quote

Margin Profile of Graco

In the third quarter, Graco’s cost of sales declined 4.7% year over year to $243.1 million. Gross profit decreased 3% to $276.1 million while the margin rose 0.5 percentage points. The favorable effects of realized pricing benefited the margin’s performance.

Operating income decreased 10.7% year over year to $145.7 million. The operating margin decreased 2.1 percentage points from the year-ago quarter. Interest expenses totaled $0.7 million compared with $1.4 million in the previous year’s quarter. The adjusted effective tax rate was 19.2% compared with the year-ago quarter’s 19.6%.

Graco’s Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

Exiting the third quarter, Graco had cash and cash equivalents of $764.5 million compared with $538 million at the end of 2023.

It generated net cash of $436.5 million from operating activities in the first nine months of 2024 compared with $491.4 million generated in the year-ago period. Capital used for purchasing property, plant and equipment totaled $92.8 million compared with $145.6 million in the year-ago period.

Graco paid out dividends worth $129 million to its shareholders in the first nine months of the year, up 8.7% from the previous year. It repurchased shares worth $31.4 million in the same period.

GGG’s Outlook

The company expects organic net sales to decline in the low single-digits on a constant-currency basis in 2024.

GGG’s Zacks Rank

The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Performance of Other Companies

Avery Dennison Corporation (AVY - Free Report) has delivered third-quarter adjusted earnings of $2.33 per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.32. The bottom line increased 9% year over year, driven by higher volume and productivity gains.

Total revenues grew 4.1% year over year to $2.18 billion and missed the consensus estimate of $2.2 billion.

John Bean Technologies Corporation reported adjusted earnings of $1.50 per share in third-quarter 2024, 35.1% higher than the prior-year quarter. The figure beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.41.

Revenues of $454 million increased 12.4% from the year-ago quarter. The top line surpassed the consensus estimate of $445 million.

A. O. Smith Corporation’s (AOS - Free Report) third-quarter adjusted earnings of 82 cents per share matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The bottom line decreased 8.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Net sales of $902.6 million missed the consensus estimate of $913 million. The top line decreased 4% year over year due to lower sales in China and decreased volumes of water heaters in North America.


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