Atomi Financial Group Inc. Boosts Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Atomi Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 77.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 436 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $453,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GWW. Oarsman Capital Inc. boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 1,430 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,185,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 21.4% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 240,856 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $199,595,000 after acquiring an additional 42,395 shares in the last quarter. Sunpointe LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth about $370,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 129.4% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 1,599 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,325,000 after purchasing an additional 902 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cim LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth about $224,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total transaction of $13,481,538.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other W.W. Grainger news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total value of $13,481,538.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,281,004.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total transaction of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $111,650,478.38. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of 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. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, September 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $990.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,005.20.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,085.04 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $994.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $961.00. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $674.41 and a 1-year high of $1,088.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 2.30 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The stock has a market cap of $52.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.16.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.35 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 53.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $9.28 EPS. On average, analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.65 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 22.50%.

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.