W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank cut its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 43.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,501 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 11,214 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $14,325,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,194,747 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,256,400,000 after purchasing an additional 27,716 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 100,843.0% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 692,469 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $684,042,000 after purchasing an additional 691,783 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 681,912 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $718,769,000 after purchasing an additional 84,595 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 584,854 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $616,465,000 after acquiring an additional 37,894 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 28.9% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 514,326 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $542,126,000 after acquiring an additional 115,290 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted 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, May 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective 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. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of 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, July 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1,116.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total value of $301,056.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 3,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,622,348.80. The trade was a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were 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 directly owned 578 shares of the company's stock, valued at $602,773.08. The trade was a 56.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWW traded down $107.29 on Friday, hitting $932.25. 1,263,025 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 286,864. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $893.99 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $1,054.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,035.63. The company has a current ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.97 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.07 by ($0.10). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.28% and a net margin of 11.08%. The company had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $9.76 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be issued a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. W.W. Grainger's payout ratio is presently 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.