Avanza Fonder AB Lowers Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Avanza Fonder AB decreased its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 12.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,125 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 576 shares during the quarter. Avanza Fonder AB's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $4,145,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Welch & Forbes LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. United Community Bank now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $163,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 485 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $511,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management lifted its stake 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 valued at $575,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 4,828 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,089,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the vice president now owns 3,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,622,348.80. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 now owns 578 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $602,773.08. This represents a 56.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,205 shares of company stock worth $2,255,320. Corporate insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on GWW shares. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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 research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price 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, William Blair raised W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1,123.13.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW traded down $18.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $1,063.31. The stock had a trading volume of 157,631 shares, compared to its average volume of 249,390. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $888.75 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.49 and a quick ratio of 1.49. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $1,041.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,053.95. The firm has a market cap of $51.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.47, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.21.

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

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $2.26 dividend. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. W.W. Grainger's payout ratio is currently 23.21%.

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.