IMPACTfolio LLC Takes $202,000 Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

IMPACTfolio LLC bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 192 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $202,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the second quarter valued at $281,104,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 92,754.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 87,283 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $906,700,000 after acquiring an additional 87,189 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 563.3% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 72,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $65,232,000 after acquiring an additional 61,400 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 67.9% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 143,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $129,175,000 after acquiring an additional 57,894 shares during the period. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at approximately $55,815,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total transaction of $778,335.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 675 shares in the company, valued at $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,406 shares of company stock worth $11,634,643 in the last quarter. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on GWW. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer cut shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW traded down $9.29 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $1,044.76. 94,027 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 202,263. The company has a market cap of $50.88 billion, a PE ratio of 28.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,145.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1,038.19. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $800.97 and a twelve month high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The company had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $9.43 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were paid a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.23%.

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.