Crestwood Advisors Group LLC Takes Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Crestwood Advisors Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 273 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $226,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.2% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,067 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $550,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 67.9% in the first quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $407,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 33.6% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 26,661 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $13,947,000 after acquiring an additional 6,705 shares during the period. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 212.9% in the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 25,798 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $13,306,000 after acquiring an additional 17,553 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the firm’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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,664,629.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the firm’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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,664,629.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total transaction of $3,694,339.44. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,756,231.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on GWW shares. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $825.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, December 20th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 16th. Loop Capital downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $925.00 to $1,000.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Stephens upped their price target on shares of 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 investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $913.89.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $954.58 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $46.90 billion, a PE ratio of 26.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.14. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $641.95 and a 52-week high of $1,034.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company’s 50 day moving average is $979.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $860.94.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.05 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.04 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.10% and a return on equity of 56.54%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $7.14 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 12th were issued a $1.86 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 9th. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 20.55%.

W.W. Grainger 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.