OLD National Bancorp IN Trims Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

OLD National Bancorp IN lessened its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,247 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 122 shares during the period. OLD National Bancorp IN’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,519,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth about $331,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at about $116,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 4,184 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,467,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 2,082 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,725,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,227 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.1 %

GWW stock opened at $942.07 on Tuesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $641.95 and a 52 week high of $1,034.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $979.33 and a 200 day moving average of $869.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.28 billion, a PE ratio of 26.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.14.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The industrial products company reported $8.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.05 by $0.28. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.10% and a return on equity of 56.54%. The company had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.14 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.26 earnings per share for the current 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 dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 9th. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on GWW. Stephens raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $775.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 16th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $809.00 to $907.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $913.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total transaction of $3,694,339.44. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,756,231.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total transaction of $3,694,339.44. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,756,231.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,664,629.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.