LPL Financial LLC Boosts Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 11.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,642 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,429 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.13% of W.W. Grainger worth $68,473,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,997,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,074,702,000 after buying an additional 45,369 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,617,149 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,679,911,000 after acquiring an additional 40,992 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,167,031 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,208,610,000 after acquiring an additional 28,626 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 8.5% during the third 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 purchasing an additional 42,866 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 14.7% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 459,536 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $491,170,000 after purchasing an additional 58,978 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. William Blair raised W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $987.55 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,032.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,077.05. The stock has a market cap of $47.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.49 and a quick ratio of 1.49. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $874.98 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 52.43% and a net margin of 11.12%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $8.33 earnings per share. On average, 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.83%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 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.