Clarius Group LLC Lowers Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Clarius Group LLC decreased its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 645 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 25 shares during the period. Clarius Group LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $535,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Clear Street Markets LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Retirement Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2,450.0% in the fourth quarter. Retirement Group LLC now owns 51 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value of $3,694,339.44. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value of $3,694,339.44. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total value of $2,966,586.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,664,629.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW stock opened at $964.97 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $979.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $858.03. The company has a market cap of $47.41 billion, a PE ratio of 26.65, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 2.88, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $625.97 and a 12-month high of $1,034.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The industrial products company reported $8.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.05 by $0.28. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 56.54% and a net margin of 11.10%. The firm had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $7.14 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 12th were given a $1.86 dividend. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 9th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 20.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GWW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $809.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 5th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Stephens upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $775.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $913.89.

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.