W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Holdings Trimmed by Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lowered its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,127 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 751 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $20,161,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $535,910,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $267,529,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $175,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 28.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 514,326 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $542,126,000 after purchasing an additional 115,290 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 14.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 681,912 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $718,769,000 after purchasing an additional 84,595 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 now directly owns 3,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,622,348.80. This trade represents a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total value 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 represents a 10.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,205 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,320 over the last three months. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. William Blair upgraded W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research cut W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $1,123.13.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW stock traded down $9.82 on Wednesday, hitting $1,079.99. 159,021 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 254,059. 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 company has a market capitalization of $51.88 billion, a PE ratio of 27.90, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.24. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $874.98 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The company's fifty day moving average is $1,016.39 and its 200 day moving average is $1,062.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last posted 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. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 52.43% and a net margin of 11.12%. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $9.62 EPS. The business's revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.