Analysts Set W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Price Target at $1,109.00

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the thirteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $1,140.56.

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of 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. Oppenheimer cut shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group began 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, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,092.96 on Wednesday. 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 capitalization of $53.23 billion, a PE ratio of 29.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.16. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $1,151.14 and a 200-day moving average of $1,028.54. W.W. Grainger has a 52-week low of $800.97 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.98 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. W.W. Grainger’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.43 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger will post 38.94 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.75%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total value of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 4,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,895,021.36. The trade was a 68.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at $102,281,004.56. The trade was a 11.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,398 shares of company stock valued at $25,116,181 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,997,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,074,702,000 after purchasing an additional 45,369 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.6% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,617,149 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,679,911,000 after purchasing an additional 40,992 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,167,031 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,208,610,000 after buying an additional 28,626 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 546,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $568,188,000 after buying an additional 42,866 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 360,026 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $324,841,000 after buying an additional 17,699 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

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.