W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by GSB Wealth Management LLC

GSB Wealth Management LLC lessened its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 4.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 709 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 35 shares during the quarter. GSB Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $748,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Avestar Capital LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.0% in the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $485,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 0.9% in the third 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 last quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC lifted its stake 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 buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 1.0% in the third quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,230,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 4.0% in the third quarter. Hutchens & Kramer Investment Management Group LLC now owns 312 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $324,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Loop Capital raised their target price 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 lifted their price objective on shares of 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. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating 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, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,122.01 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $1,125.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,057.85. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $870.99 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market cap of $54.64 billion, a PE ratio of 30.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.98 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $9.43 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were paid a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other W.W. Grainger news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,513,055.31. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total value of $150,753.75. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This trade represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 10,406 shares of company stock valued at $11,634,643. 9.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About W.W. Grainger

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.