Covestor Ltd Lowers Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Covestor Ltd cut its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 23.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 96 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 29 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $100,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 36.6% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 9,506 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,664,000 after buying an additional 2,548 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 1,201.6% in the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $748,000 after purchasing an additional 769 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 11.2% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 59,822 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $60,857,000 after purchasing an additional 6,042 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 576.3% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 5,559 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,655,000 after purchasing an additional 4,737 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diversified Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 280.4% in the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 2,621 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,365,000 after buying an additional 1,932 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $111,650,478.38. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other W.W. Grainger news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total transaction of $778,335.36. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 value of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 50,775 shares of company stock worth $52,489,979. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock opened at $1,207.68 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,064.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $983.47. The company has a market capitalization of $58.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.74, a PEG ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.15. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $772.13 and a twelve month high of $1,227.66. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 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 business had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $9.43 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.91 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be given a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 22.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on GWW shares. 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. Robert W. Baird raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $990.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Baird R W raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,058.50.

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.