QRG Capital Management Inc. Has $2.68 Million Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 16.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,581 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 371 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,681,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised 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 in the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 225.0% during the 1st quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 39 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the first quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the second quarter valued at about $42,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on GWW shares. Oppenheimer cut shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 22nd. Baird R W upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Loop Capital increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, September 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $990.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,058.50.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of GWW opened at $1,195.10 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1,041.21 and a 200-day moving average of $974.44. 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 company has a market capitalization of $58.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.15. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $764.13 and a 1 year high of $1,199.00.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $9.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.87 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total transaction of $778,335.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at $10,513,055.31. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other W.W. Grainger news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was 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 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $13,481,538.56. Following the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 41,198 shares of company stock valued at $41,784,426. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

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.