Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC Grows Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,360 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $4,596,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,997,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,074,702,000 after purchasing an additional 45,369 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,617,149 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,679,911,000 after buying an additional 40,992 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,167,031 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,208,610,000 after buying an additional 28,626 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 546,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $568,188,000 after buying an additional 42,866 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 324,367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $336,956,000 after buying an additional 12,805 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $995.60 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,057.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,075.43. The firm has a market cap of $48.00 billion, a PE ratio of 25.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $874.98 and a 12-month high of $1,227.66.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.75 by ($0.04). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $8.33 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 21.18%.

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.