Tyche Wealth Partners LLC Takes Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Tyche Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 210 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at approximately $848,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 313.3% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 1,521 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,603,000 after purchasing an additional 1,153 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 72.6% in the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $22,901,000 after purchasing an additional 9,270 shares during the period. Clark & Stuart Inc bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $1,741,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 27.0% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,312,000 after purchasing an additional 473 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on GWW. Robert W. Baird upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Oppenheimer downgraded W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Loop Capital boosted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target for the company. 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 given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,148.56.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 675 shares in the company, valued at $814,070.25. The trade was a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,044.53 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.49. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $874.98 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.17. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $1,105.24 and a 200-day moving average of $1,066.89.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period last year, the firm posted $8.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 41.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.79%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.