W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Purchased by Matrix Trust Co

Matrix Trust Co lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 584.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 89 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. Matrix Trust Co’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $94,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of GWW. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 250.0% during the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 111.1% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 38.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 50 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at $75,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research raised W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 22nd. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price target for the company. 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,075.64 on Tuesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $833.50 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The company has a market capitalization of $52.38 billion, a PE ratio of 29.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1,139.49 and a 200-day moving average of $1,047.21.

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 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $9.43 EPS. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.76%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total value of $150,753.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,406 shares of company stock valued at $11,634,643 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger 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.