Locust Wood Capital Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 790 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $780,000.
Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,685.7% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 125 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $123,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 5,095 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,033,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 116.0% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 33,917 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $33,506,000 after purchasing an additional 18,216 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 701 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $692,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 8.8% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 6,970 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,796,000 after purchasing an additional 564 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several research analysts recently commented on GWW shares. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,176.00 to $1,007.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $950.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,215.00 to $1,160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $1,080.38.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on GWW
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total value of $301,056.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 3,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,622,348.80. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.
W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.7%
Shares of GWW traded up $6.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $948.75. The company had a trading volume of 208,663 shares, compared to its average volume of 404,106. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.82. The company has a market capitalization of $45.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.18. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $1,037.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,028.23. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $893.99 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66.
W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $10.07 by ($0.10). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 49.63%. The company had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $9.76 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.
W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be paid a dividend of $2.26 per share. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 11th. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.94%.
W.W. Grainger Company Profile
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Free Report)
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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