Horizon Investment Services LLC Sells 229 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Horizon Investment Services LLC lowered its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 4.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,411 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 229 shares during the period. W.W. Grainger makes up about 2.2% of Horizon Investment Services LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Horizon Investment Services LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $4,488,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GWW. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at $392,470,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 82,775.0% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 43,095 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,712,000 after purchasing an additional 43,043 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 240,856 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $199,595,000 after purchasing an additional 42,395 shares during the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the first quarter worth $28,241,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 75.5% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 43,087 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,706,000 after purchasing an additional 18,542 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on GWW shares. Robert W. Baird lowered W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $1,000.00 to $975.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Baird R W lowered W.W. Grainger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Loop Capital cut their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $975.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Stephens raised W.W. Grainger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $1,000.00 to $1,250.00 in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, June 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $959.44.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock traded up $14.37 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $918.46. 341,937 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 238,801. The company has a market cap of $45.07 billion, a PE ratio of 25.36, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.17. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $674.41 and a twelve month high of $1,034.18. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $923.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $931.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $9.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.57 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.26 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 54.31% and a net margin of 10.94%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $9.61 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th were paid a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 10th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other W.W. Grainger news, SVP Matt Fortin sold 511 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.20, for a total value of $467,667.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,848 shares in the company, valued at $1,691,289.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

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.