W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Position Increased by Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC raised its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 788 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $819,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of GWW. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,997,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,074,702,000 after purchasing an additional 45,369 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,617,149 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,679,911,000 after purchasing an additional 40,992 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 546,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $568,188,000 after buying an additional 42,866 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 5.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 360,026 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $324,841,000 after buying an additional 17,699 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.1% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 324,367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $336,956,000 after buying an additional 12,805 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total transaction of $10,705,553.68. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,895,021.36. The trade was a 68.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $814,070.25. The trade was a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,398 shares of company stock valued at $25,116,181 in the last quarter. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of GWW opened at $1,139.98 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59. The firm has a market cap of $55.52 billion, a PE ratio of 30.90, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.16. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $1,146.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,023.89. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $800.97 and a twelve month high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The company had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $9.43 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were given a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 22.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on GWW. Baird R W upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Robert W. Baird upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price target on the stock. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,109.00.

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.