Integrated Advisors Network LLC Lowers Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Integrated Advisors Network LLC reduced its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 13.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 242 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 39 shares during the period. Integrated Advisors Network LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $239,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Welch & Forbes LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $507,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. United Community Bank lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. United Community Bank now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $163,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. PDS Planning Inc lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 485 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $511,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Zacks Investment Management lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 545 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $575,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 4,828 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,089,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,063.31 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $1,044.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,051.84. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $888.75 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.08 billion, a PE ratio of 27.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.51 by $0.35. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $9.62 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 23.21%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on GWW. William Blair raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $966.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,123.13.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total transaction of $1,160,647.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,205,523.20. The trade was a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total transaction of $301,056.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 3,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,622,348.80. This trade represents a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,205 shares of company stock worth $2,255,320 over the last three months. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.