W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Summitry LLC

Summitry LLC lessened its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 43.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 158 shares during the quarter. Summitry LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $220,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 111.1% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $989.47 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,034.72 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,077.68. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $874.98 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.49. The firm has a market cap of $47.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $8.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 21.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on GWW. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. William Blair raised W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. StockNews.com lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,151.50.

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.