Peak Financial Advisors LLC Takes $2.96 Million Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Peak Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,998 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $2,962,000. W.W. Grainger accounts for 1.5% of Peak Financial Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 21st largest position.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bancreek Capital Management LP bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth $3,687,000. Columbus Macro LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 484.2% during the fourth quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 5,830 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $6,145,000 after purchasing an additional 4,832 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 29.2% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,833 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,932,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 66.3% in the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 2,188 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,306,000 after purchasing an additional 872 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 694.1% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 76,674 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $80,818,000 after purchasing an additional 67,018 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GWW has been the subject of several research analyst reports. William Blair upgraded W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price 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. 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 research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $1,123.13.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.7%

W.W. Grainger stock traded up $7.58 on Thursday, hitting $1,083.54. 144,867 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 250,479. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $874.98 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66. The firm has a market cap of $52.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.49, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $1,028.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,058.34.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $9.51 by $0.35. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $9.62 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $2.26 dividend. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. W.W. Grainger's payout ratio is 23.21%.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

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 now owns 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. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,042.86, for a total transaction of $793,616.46. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 578 shares of the company's stock, valued at $602,773.08. This trade represents a 56.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,205 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,320. Insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

About W.W. Grainger

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.