Spire Wealth Management Reduces Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Spire Wealth Management lessened its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 82.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,630 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 7,571 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,610,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of GWW. Welch & Forbes LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $507,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. United Community Bank increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. United Community Bank now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 485 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $511,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the fourth 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. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 4,828 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,089,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE GWW traded up $13.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $1,028.72. 375,378 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 249,401. The stock has a market cap of $49.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.41, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.21. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,055.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,043.43. 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 results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $9.62 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $2.26 per share. The ex-dividend date 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 yield of 0.88%. W.W. Grainger's payout ratio is 23.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on GWW shares. William Blair raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note 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 research note on Thursday, April 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $1,123.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 3,369 shares in the company, valued at $3,622,348.80. The trade was a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total transaction of $1,160,647.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,205,523.20. The trade was a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,205 shares of company stock worth $2,255,320. 6.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.