Jag Capital Management LLC Sells 7,888 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Jag Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 71.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,146 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 7,888 shares during the quarter. Jag Capital Management LLC's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,108,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Welch & Forbes LLC grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $507,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. United Community Bank grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. United Community Bank now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $163,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 485 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $511,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 545 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $575,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 4,828 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,089,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total transaction of $301,056.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,369 shares in the company, valued at $3,622,348.80. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 approximately $10,205,523.20. This trade represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,205 shares of company stock worth $2,255,320 over the last three months. 6.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock opened at $1,028.72 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,056.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,042.53. The stock has a market cap of $49.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.21. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $888.75 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.74 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $9.51 by $0.35. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.08% and a return on equity of 51.28%. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $9.62 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were given a dividend of $2.26 per share. 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 0.88%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio is 23.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

W.W. Grainger Company 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.

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