Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 1,157 W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Atlas Legacy Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,157 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,220,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Creative Planning boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 11,560 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,491,000 after acquiring an additional 1,405 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 23.5% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 193,888 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $201,413,000 after acquiring an additional 36,892 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 173.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 706 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $733,000 after acquiring an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 3rd quarter valued at $236,000. Finally, Venture Visionary Partners LLC bought a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 3rd quarter valued at $224,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on GWW. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 target price on the stock. Northcoast Research began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,148.56.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.4 %

GWW stock opened at $1,023.20 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $874.98 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,080.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,072.69. The stock has a market cap of $49.83 billion, a PE ratio of 26.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.17.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share 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 quarter last year, the firm posted $8.33 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.18%.

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.