Concord Asset Management LLC VA Has $2.37 Million Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Concord Asset Management LLC VA lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,285 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 482 shares during the period. Concord Asset Management LLC VA’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,374,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 17.4% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,148,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,167,913,000 after purchasing an additional 169,897 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 5.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 360,026 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $324,841,000 after buying an additional 17,699 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter valued at $281,104,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 243,470 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $219,386,000 after buying an additional 1,849 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 23.5% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 193,888 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $201,413,000 after acquiring an additional 36,892 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GWW has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Oppenheimer cut W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $990.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,086.50.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.2 %

GWW opened at $1,178.33 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $772.13 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.38 billion, a PE ratio of 31.94, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $1,078.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $988.48.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $9.43 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th will be given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 22.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $814,070.25. The trade was a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total transaction of $13,481,538.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at $102,281,004.56. This represents a 11.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 50,900 shares of company stock valued at $52,640,733. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.