W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Bought by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 143 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $10,169,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GWW. Avestar Capital LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.0% during the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $485,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Optas LLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Optas LLC now owns 1,353 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,221,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Virtue Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 5.2% in the third quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $232,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sage Mountain Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 4.4% in the second quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 284 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $256,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on GWW shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,109.00.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.2 %

GWW stock opened at $1,139.98 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $1,146.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,023.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.90, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.16. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $800.97 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59.

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

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total value of $13,481,538.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,281,004.56. This trade represents a 11.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 approximately $814,070.25. This trade represents a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 23,398 shares of company stock valued at $25,116,181. Corporate 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.