Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Sells 445 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lowered its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 31.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 949 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 445 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.'s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $938,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its stake 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 buying an additional 10 shares during the period. PDS Planning Inc increased its position 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 worth $511,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Zacks Investment Management raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 545 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $575,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd. raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Crew Capital Management Ltd. now owns 270 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Planning Group LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 6.5% during the 1st quarter. Retirement Planning Group LLC now owns 213 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $210,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the vice president owned 578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $602,773.08. The trade was a 56.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total transaction of $301,056.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 3,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,622,348.80. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on GWW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of 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. Wolfe Research lowered W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on 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. Two equities 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1,116.25.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,059.71 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $50.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.74 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1,062.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1,037.36. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $893.99 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66.

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, topping 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 business had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $9.62 EPS. W.W. Grainger's revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $2.26 per share. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio is 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.

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