Commerce Bank Has $6.62 Million Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Commerce Bank lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 0.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,507 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the quarter. Commerce Bank’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $6,620,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bfsg LLC acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 170.0% in the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the period. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 275.0% in the fourth quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 45 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GWW shares. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $975.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com cut W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Baird R W cut W.W. Grainger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $1,000.00 to $975.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $959.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Matt Fortin sold 511 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $915.20, for a total transaction of $467,667.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,848 shares in the company, valued at $1,691,289.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 0.6 %

GWW opened at $903.28 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.32 billion, a PE ratio of 24.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 1.33. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $674.41 and a fifty-two week high of $1,034.18. The company’s 50-day moving average is $923.95 and its 200 day moving average is $930.43.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $9.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.57 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.26 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 54.31% and a net margin of 10.94%. W.W. Grainger’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $9.61 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.91%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.64%.

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.