HB Wealth Management LLC Raises Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 13.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,214 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. HB Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,096,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 203 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $168,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 10.0% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 121 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $124,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Optas LLC grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 0.8% in the second quarter. Optas LLC now owns 1,353 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,221,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.7% in the first quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $471,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Copperwynd Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Copperwynd Financial LLC now owns 347 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $288,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on GWW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Robert W. Baird lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $1,000.00 to $975.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Baird R W lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,017.13.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE GWW opened at $968.04 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.73, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.17. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $945.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $952.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.30. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $674.41 and a fifty-two week high of $1,034.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.58 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.35 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 53.25% and a net margin of 10.86%. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.28 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.1 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th will be issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 12th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.64%.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

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