Diversified Trust Co Decreases Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Diversified Trust Co decreased its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,209 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 15 shares during the quarter. Diversified Trust Co’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,382,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of GWW. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 2nd quarter valued at about $281,104,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 92,754.3% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 87,283 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $906,700,000 after purchasing an additional 87,189 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 563.3% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 72,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $65,232,000 after purchasing an additional 61,400 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the third quarter worth approximately $55,815,000. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 43.9% in the second quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 154,324 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $139,237,000 after buying an additional 47,053 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total transaction of $778,335.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,513,055.31. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $814,070.25. The trade was a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,406 shares of company stock worth $11,634,643 over the last three months. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the subject of several analyst reports. Oppenheimer cut shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report 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. StockNews.com lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,062.90 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $1,142.43 and its 200 day moving average is $1,042.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $51.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.81, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $806.08 and a twelve month high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $9.43 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were paid a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.