Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC Raises Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 788 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $819,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. XTX Topco Ltd increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 317.4% in the third quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 1,895 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,969,000 after buying an additional 1,441 shares during the last quarter. Zega Financial LLC increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Zega Financial LLC now owns 888 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $922,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,287 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,608,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 345.7% in the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 1,346 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,398,000 after purchasing an additional 1,044 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 28.2% during the third quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 43,283 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $44,963,000 after purchasing an additional 9,525 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,139.98 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $1,146.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,023.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.90, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.16. 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, Inc. has a 52 week low of $800.97 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 business earned $9.43 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.94 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors 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 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the business’s 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 transaction of $13,481,538.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,281,004.56. The trade was a 11.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total value of $778,335.36. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,398 shares of company stock valued at $25,116,181 over the last 90 days. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on GWW shares. Bank of America initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price objective on the stock. Northcoast Research started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average 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.