Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. reduced its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 51.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,028 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,144 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,003,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 486 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $480,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 545 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $575,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd. now owns 270 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $267,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 34.3% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 47 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 10.3% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 128 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Insider Buying and Selling 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 stock was sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total value of $301,056.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 3,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,622,348.80. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 value of $793,616.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 578 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $602,773.08. The trade was a 56.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several research firms recently issued reports on GWW. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,215.00 to $1,160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on 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. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $1,116.25.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on W.W. Grainger
W.W. Grainger Stock Performance
GWW traded down $107.29 during trading on Friday, reaching $932.25. 1,263,025 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 324,513. The stock has a market cap of $44.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.93, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.18. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $1,051.42 and a 200 day moving average of $1,034.57. The company has a current ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $10.07 by ($0.10). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.28% and a net margin of 11.08%. The company had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $9.76 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger'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 fiscal year.
W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be paid a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.21%.
W.W. Grainger 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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