Truist Financial Corp Decreases Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Truist Financial Corp lowered its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 33,502 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,522 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $27,763,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of 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 filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of 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 filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,664,629.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on GWW shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Loop Capital reduced their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $975.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. StockNews.com lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $809.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $938.89.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $934.57 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $979.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $877.66. The company has a current ratio of 2.19, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a market capitalization of $45.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.80, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.14. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $641.95 and a 12-month high of $1,034.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $9.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.57 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.26 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 54.31% and a net margin of 10.94%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $9.61 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a $2.05 dividend. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 20.54%.

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.