W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Stock Holdings Lessened by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. lowered its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 43 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,601,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 36.6% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 9,506 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,664,000 after buying an additional 2,548 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,201.6% in the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $748,000 after buying an additional 769 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 576.3% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 5,559 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,655,000 after buying an additional 4,737 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 280.4% in the second quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 2,621 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,365,000 after buying an additional 1,932 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 27.0% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,312,000 after buying an additional 473 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 0.9 %

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,205.87 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The company has a market capitalization of $58.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.69, a PEG ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 1.15. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a one year low of $772.13 and a one year high of $1,227.66. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $1,110.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,002.70.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $9.43 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be given a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 22.23%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total value of $778,335.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total value of $13,481,538.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. This represents a 11.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 50,900 shares of company stock valued at $52,640,733. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on GWW. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Robert W. Baird raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,109.00.

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.