Atlas Brown Inc. Makes New $203,000 Investment in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Atlas Brown Inc. acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. First Hawaiian Bank raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 313.4% in the 1st quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 1,393 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,417,000 after purchasing an additional 1,056 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 22.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 431 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $438,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter worth about $3,690,000. CWM LLC raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,884 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,917,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter worth about $379,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock opened at $924.49 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $934.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $920.63. The stock has a market cap of $45.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.16. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $674.41 and a 1 year high of $1,034.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $9.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.57 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.26 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.94% and a return on equity of 54.31%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $9.61 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 10th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is presently 22.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the subject of several analyst reports. Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $975.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Baird R W cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Stephens upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $1,000.00 to $1,250.00 in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $959.44.

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.