W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Wealth Alliance

Wealth Alliance decreased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,175 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 55 shares during the quarter. Wealth Alliance’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $974,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth approximately $258,792,000. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 17.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,396,928 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $966,451,000 after purchasing an additional 204,507 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 1,568.4% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 165,035 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $85,122,000 after purchasing an additional 155,143 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 24.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 654,682 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $364,168,000 after purchasing an additional 130,519 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 10.8% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,027,150 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $706,047,000 after purchasing an additional 100,380 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of GWW stock opened at $955.44 on Wednesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $641.95 and a fifty-two week high of $1,034.18. The stock has a market cap of $46.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.14. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $979.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $862.80. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The industrial products company reported $8.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.05 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.04 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 56.54% and a net margin of 11.10%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $7.14 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 12th were paid a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 9th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 20.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value of $3,694,339.44. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total transaction of $2,966,586.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,664,629.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value of $3,694,339.44. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,756,231.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on GWW shares. UBS Group upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Stephens increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $775.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $809.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $913.89.

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.