Kinsale Capital Group Inc. Raises Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Key Points

• Kinsale Capital Group Inc. has increased its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. by 16.4% by acquiring an additional 984 shares, bringing its total holdings to 6,999 shares.
• W.W. Grainger recently announced a quarterly dividend increase from $2.05 to $2.26 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 0.86%.
• The company reported $9.86 earnings per share for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and showing a 1.7% year-over-year revenue growth.

Kinsale Capital Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 16.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,999 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 984 shares during the quarter. W.W. Grainger comprises about 1.7% of Kinsale Capital Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. Kinsale Capital Group Inc.'s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $6,914,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 34.3% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 47 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth about $54,000. Columbia River Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the first quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 22.4% during the first quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. now owns 93 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $92,000 after buying an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,042.86, for a total transaction of $793,616.46. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 578 shares of the company's stock, valued at $602,773.08. This represents a 56.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the vice president directly owned 3,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,622,348.80. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on GWW. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Wolfe Research lowered W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,215.00 to $1,160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1,116.25.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock traded down $5.42 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $1,048.60. 140,804 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 318,280. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $1,056.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,035.69. The stock has a market cap of $50.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.92, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $893.99 and a fifty-two 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.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last posted 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. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.28% and a net margin of 11.08%. The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $9.62 EPS. W.W. Grainger's revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.21%.

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.