W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Acquired by Austin Private Wealth LLC

Austin Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 19.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 244 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $257,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of GWW. Avestar Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $485,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Busey Bank lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Busey Bank now owns 615 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $648,000 after buying an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 0.9% during the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,237,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $232,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,230,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GWW has been the topic of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer cut shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target 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. UBS Group began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 5.5 %

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,064.43 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.84 billion, a PE ratio of 28.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $874.98 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66. 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 firm’s 50-day moving average is $1,118.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,065.26.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.75 by ($0.04). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $8.33 EPS. Analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.95 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.77%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the business’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 transaction of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,379 shares in the company, valued at $4,895,021.36. The trade was a 68.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by 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.