Pallas Capital Advisors LLC Sells 160 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Pallas Capital Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 5,949 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 160 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $6,270,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GWW. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 10.8% during the second quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,354 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,222,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 56.4% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 76,246 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $68,792,000 after buying an additional 27,480 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 5.2% in the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 10,614 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,576,000 after acquiring an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 16.8% during the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,267 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,143,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,515 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,074,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock traded up $23.16 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $1,075.64. The company had a trading volume of 267,796 shares, compared to its average volume of 233,884. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $833.50 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The company has a 50 day moving average of $1,139.89 and a 200 day moving average of $1,046.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The business had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $9.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 22.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GWW has been the subject of several analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Robert W. Baird raised W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research raised W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,140.56.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total transaction of $778,335.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total value of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,895,021.36. This trade represents a 68.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,406 shares of company stock worth $11,634,643 over the last 90 days. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.