W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Stake Raised by Mizuho Securities USA LLC

Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 236.9% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 11,360 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,988 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $11,801,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the first quarter worth $41,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 561 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $570,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter valued at about $487,000. Cynosure Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter worth approximately $332,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 53.8% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 140 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $143,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Wolfe Research raised W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 22nd. Baird R W raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $990.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,086.50.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.2 %

GWW stock opened at $1,178.33 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 50-day moving average of $1,078.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $988.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.15. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $772.13 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). The company had revenue of $4.39 billion during 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 revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $9.43 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.91 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th will be paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 22.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total value of $150,753.75. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $814,070.25. The trade was a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total transaction of $10,705,553.68. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,895,021.36. This represents a 68.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 50,900 shares of company stock worth $52,640,733. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

W.W. Grainger Company 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.