W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Purchased by TD Waterhouse Canada Inc.

TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 7.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,612 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 603 shares during the quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc.'s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $9,079,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 11.7% during the third quarter. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 498 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $517,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the third quarter valued at about $2,675,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.7% during the third quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 2,385 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,477,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the third quarter valued at about $848,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.7% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 6,115 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,352,000 after buying an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the firm'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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,235 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,205,523.20. This trade represents a 10.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GWW has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. William Blair upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded 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 report on Thursday, April 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $1,130.89.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE:GWW traded down $4.09 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $1,015.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 149,612 shares, compared to its average volume of 252,784. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $874.98 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66. The firm's 50 day moving average is $986.27 and its 200-day moving average is $1,070.05. 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 firm has a market cap of $48.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.20.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.75 by ($0.04). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 52.43% and a net margin of 11.12%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $8.33 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. W.W. Grainger's payout ratio is 21.18%.

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.