Janus Henderson Group PLC Acquires 326 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 5.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,477 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 326 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $6,727,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Avestar Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.0% in the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $485,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the period. Optas LLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.8% in the second quarter. Optas LLC now owns 1,353 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,221,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. CX Institutional increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.9% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,237,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.4% in the second quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 284 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.7% in the second quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $418,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total transaction of $10,705,553.68. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,379 shares in the company, valued at $4,895,021.36. This represents a 68.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 111,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $111,650,478.38. The trade was a 19.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 50,900 shares of company stock valued at $52,640,733. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock opened at $1,161.79 on Tuesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $800.97 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66. The company has a market cap of $56.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.49, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.16. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $1,135.11 and a 200 day moving average of $1,016.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.68.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The company had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $9.43 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.94 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 22.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GWW. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Baird R W upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,109.00.

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.