Independent Advisor Alliance Boosts Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Independent Advisor Alliance grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 47.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,521 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 491 shares during the quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,604,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Avestar Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $485,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Busey Bank lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Busey Bank now owns 615 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $648,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $462,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 43.5% in the fourth quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Finally, Welch & Forbes LLC grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $507,000 after buying an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, William Blair raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW stock opened at $968.06 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.01, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a one year low of $874.98 and a one year high of $1,227.66. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,046.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,075.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.49.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS 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 period in the prior year, the company posted $8.33 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.18%.

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.