W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Upgraded to Strong-Buy by Baird R W

Baird R W upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Wednesday, Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on GWW. Wolfe Research upgraded W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Bank of America began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley began 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 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,030.70.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.7 %

GWW stock opened at $1,127.00 on Wednesday. W.W. Grainger has a twelve month low of $674.41 and a twelve month high of $1,128.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,008.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $964.03.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.58 by $0.18. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 53.25%. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $9.28 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger will post 38.65 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 given a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.64%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total transaction of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,559 shares in the company, valued at $111,650,478.38. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other W.W. Grainger news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total value of $27,524,551.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 111,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $111,650,478.38. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 170.0% during the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 225.0% during the 1st quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 39 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the first quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the second quarter worth $42,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.