W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Position Lessened by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 12.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,401 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,625 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $18,177,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $54,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE GWW traded up $13.24 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $1,028.72. 375,378 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 249,401. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.42 billion, a PE ratio of 26.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.21. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $888.75 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 2.74. The business's fifty day moving average price is $1,055.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,043.43.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $9.51 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.28% and a net margin of 11.08%. W.W. Grainger's quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $9.62 EPS. Analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $2.26 per share. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.21%.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total value of $301,056.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,622,348.80. The trade was a 7.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,042.86, for a total value of $793,616.46. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 578 shares in the company, valued at $602,773.08. This trade represents a 56.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 2,205 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,320. Insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Wolfe Research cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on 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, William Blair raised W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1,123.13.

W.W. Grainger Profile

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.