Toronto Dominion Bank Has $24.95 Million Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Toronto Dominion Bank raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 23,673 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,628 shares during the quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $24,952,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $43,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock traded down $3.68 during trading on Thursday, hitting $1,077.70. The company had a trading volume of 157,755 shares, compared to its average volume of 254,889. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $1,008.33 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,065.16. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $874.98 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66. The company has a market cap of $51.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.84, a P/E/G 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.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.51 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.62 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a $2.26 dividend. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. W.W. Grainger's payout ratio is presently 23.21%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,235 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,205,523.20. The trade was a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were 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 now directly owns 578 shares in the company, valued at $602,773.08. The trade was a 56.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on GWW shares. William Blair upgraded W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wolfe Research lowered W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $1,120.00.

W.W. Grainger Company 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.