Creative Planning Has $11.49 Million Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Creative Planning grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 13.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,560 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,405 shares during the quarter. Creative Planning’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $11,491,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the second quarter valued at $281,104,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 17.4% in the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,148,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,167,913,000 after buying an additional 169,897 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the first quarter valued at $159,365,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 563.3% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 72,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $65,232,000 after buying an additional 61,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 67.9% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 143,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $129,175,000 after acquiring an additional 57,894 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other W.W. Grainger news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total value 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 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total value of $13,481,538.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at $102,281,004.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GWW has been the topic of several recent research reports. Baird R W upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Robert W. Baird upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research upgraded W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 22nd. Oppenheimer cut W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, 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 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,043.20.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of GWW opened at $1,098.93 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $53.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 2.30, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $1,012.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $964.63. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $674.41 and a 1 year high of $1,129.92.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.58 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.35 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 53.25% and a net margin of 10.86%. W.W. Grainger’s revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $9.28 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.65 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.64%.

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.