Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd Sells 1,053 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd reduced its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 22.1% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,703 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,053 shares during the quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at $392,470,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 17.4% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,148,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,167,913,000 after purchasing an additional 169,897 shares during the period. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the first quarter worth about $159,365,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 67.9% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 143,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $129,175,000 after buying an additional 57,894 shares during the period. Finally, FIL Ltd raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 21.4% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 240,856 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $199,595,000 after buying an additional 42,395 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Matt Fortin sold 511 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.20, for a total transaction of $467,667.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,848 shares in the company, valued at $1,691,289.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE:GWW opened at $993.82 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $959.32 and its 200-day moving average is $954.71. The stock has a market cap of $48.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 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 current ratio of 2.30, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.58 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.35 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 53.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $9.28 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.75 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is presently 22.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Robert W. Baird lowered W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $1,000.00 to $975.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, September 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $990.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com cut W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,014.11.

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.