Pinnacle Associates Ltd. Sells 347 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lessened its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 52.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 310 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 347 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $322,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 250.0% in the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 225.0% in the first quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 39 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the first quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth about $42,000. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was 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 directly owns 111,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $111,650,478.38. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Oppenheimer lowered W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Baird R W raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, Loop Capital increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,058.50.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,105.07 on Monday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $747.00 and a 1 year high of $1,130.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,035.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $971.90. The company has a market cap of $53.96 billion, a PE ratio of 29.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.15.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.98 by ($0.11). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The company had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $9.43 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.69 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 22.23%.

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.