Brighton Jones LLC Decreases Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Brighton Jones LLC lessened its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 23.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 218 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 68 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $226,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 170.0% in the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 225.0% in the 1st quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 39 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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 report on Friday, August 2nd. Baird R W upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research upgraded W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 22nd. Robert W. Baird raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, 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 on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,043.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The stock was 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 $102,281,004.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other W.W. Grainger news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of W.W. Grainger 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $111,650,478.38. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at $102,281,004.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

GWW stock opened at $1,090.94 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a one year low of $687.55 and a one year high of $1,129.92. The firm has a market cap of $53.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.93, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 2.30. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,022.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $967.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $9.28 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 22.50%.

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.