W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Stock Holdings Trimmed by Uncommon Cents Investing LLC

Uncommon Cents Investing LLC lowered its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 16.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 520 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Uncommon Cents Investing LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $431,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 436 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $361,000 after buying an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. CI Investments Inc. grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.9% in the third quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 489 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $338,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 1.6% in the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 927 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $641,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 6.0% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 301 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $208,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mcdonald Partners LLC grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 0.8% in the third quarter. Mcdonald Partners LLC now owns 2,027 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total transaction of $2,966,586.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,664,629.98. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,664,629.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $825.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. Stephens boosted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $775.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on 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. Finally, StockNews.com raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 16th. One equities 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $913.89.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW traded down $2.87 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $1,017.30. 164,984 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 238,109. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $625.97 and a 1-year high of $1,034.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 2.88 and a quick ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.09, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.14. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $953.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $831.79.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The industrial products company reported $8.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $7.14 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 12th were paid a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 9th. This represents a $7.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 20.55%.

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.