W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Bought by Blue Trust Inc.

Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 35.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 959 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 253 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $996,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of GWW. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter worth $848,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $1,603,000 after acquiring an additional 1,153 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $22,901,000 after acquiring an additional 9,270 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $2,312,000 after acquiring an additional 473 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clark & Stuart Inc acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth $1,741,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total value of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,379 shares in the company, valued at $4,895,021.36. The trade was a 68.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,406 shares of company stock worth $11,634,643. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of GWW opened at $1,131.17 on Wednesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $874.98 and a 12-month high of $1,227.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $1,124.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,063.09.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on GWW shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Oppenheimer downgraded W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Company 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.