Venture Visionary Partners LLC Invests $224,000 in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Venture Visionary Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 216 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $224,000.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 45.6% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,443 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,825,000 after purchasing an additional 2,958 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 31.9% in the first quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 1,275 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,297,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 192.8% in the 1st quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 1,918 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,951,000 after acquiring an additional 1,263 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 500.0% during the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 78 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 15.8% in the 1st quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 448 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $456,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GWW. Loop Capital increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Baird R W raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Oppenheimer cut W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,043.20.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,092.53 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,014.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $965.23. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $674.41 and a 52 week high of $1,129.92. The stock has a market cap of $53.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.16, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 2.30.

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

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the firm’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 value of $13,481,538.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 111,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $111,650,478.38. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total value of $13,481,538.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,281,004.56. This represents 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 corporate insiders.

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.