Parallel Advisors LLC Acquires 182 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 16.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,267 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,143,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 17.4% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,148,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,167,913,000 after acquiring an additional 169,897 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 689,090 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $571,042,000 after acquiring an additional 11,460 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $392,470,000. FIL Ltd grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 21.4% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 240,856 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $199,595,000 after purchasing an additional 42,395 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the first quarter worth $159,365,000. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Matt Fortin sold 511 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.20, for a total transaction of $467,667.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,848 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,691,289.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $993.82 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $48.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.44, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 2.30 and a quick ratio of 1.40. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $674.41 and a 1 year high of $1,034.18. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $959.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $954.71.

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 firm had revenue of $4.31 billion for 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%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $9.28 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.75 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 22.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $990.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com cut W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,014.11.

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.