W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Coho Partners Ltd.

Coho Partners Ltd. decreased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 29.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,449 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 20,235 shares during the quarter. W.W. Grainger comprises 2.9% of Coho Partners Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Coho Partners Ltd. owned approximately 0.10% of W.W. Grainger worth $48,847,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company's stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,035.51 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $1,053.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,046.60. 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 market capitalization of $49.74 billion, a PE ratio of 26.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 2.74.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.08% and a return on equity of 51.28%. The company's revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.62 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict 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 disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.21%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on GWW shares. William Blair upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective 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 note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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 report on Tuesday, May 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $1,123.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,235 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,205,523.20. This trade represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 transaction of $793,616.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $602,773.08. This represents a 56.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,205 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,320 over the last ninety days. Corporate 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.

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