Morgan Stanley Increases W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Price Target to $1,215.00

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) had its price objective boosted by Morgan Stanley from $990.00 to $1,215.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

GWW has been the topic of a number of other reports. UBS Group began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective on the stock. Loop Capital boosted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Oppenheimer cut W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,109.00.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 1.1 %

NYSE:GWW opened at $1,190.86 on Tuesday. W.W. Grainger has a 1 year low of $772.13 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $1,094.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $995.07. The stock has a market cap of $57.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.28, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued 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 business had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $9.43 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that W.W. Grainger will post 38.92 earnings per share 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be given a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total transaction of $778,335.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 50,900 shares of company stock worth $52,640,733 over the last quarter. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GWW. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 250.0% in the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 111.1% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 537.5% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 51 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

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.