W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Stock Position Lowered by Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc

Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc reduced its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 40.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,390 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,597 shares during the period. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,361,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 438 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $462,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 43.5% in the 4th quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $507,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. United Community Bank boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. United Community Bank now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $163,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 238 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $251,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. William Blair raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1,123.13.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,042.86, for a total transaction of $793,616.46. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $602,773.08. This trade represents a 56.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total transaction of $1,160,647.68. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,235 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,205,523.20. The trade was a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,205 shares of company stock worth $2,255,320 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWW traded up $4.82 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $1,080.78. The stock had a trading volume of 44,423 shares, compared to its average volume of 250,094. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $1,028.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,058.34. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $874.98 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.92, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.49.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.51 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.31 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. The business's revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.62 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.21%.

About W.W. Grainger

W.W. Grainger, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes maintenance, repair, and operating products and services primarily in North America, Japan, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, High-Touch Solutions N.A. and Endless Assortment. The company provides safety, security, material handling and storage equipment, pumps and plumbing equipment, cleaning and maintenance, and metalworking and hand tools.