W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Acquired by JGP Wealth Management LLC

JGP Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 14,082 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. W.W. Grainger accounts for 1.9% of JGP Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. JGP Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $14,629,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter worth about $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 purchasing an additional 169,897 shares during the period. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the first quarter valued at approximately $159,365,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 563.3% during 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 67.9% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 143,193 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $129,175,000 after buying an additional 57,894 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 22nd. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,005.20.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

W.W. Grainger stock traded up $55.11 on Friday, hitting $1,080.27. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 163,859 shares, compared to its average volume of 234,435. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $991.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $960.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market cap of $52.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.16. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a one year low of $674.41 and a one year high of $1,084.24.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.58 by $0.18. The firm 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%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $9.28 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.65 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 value of $13,481,538.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at $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 available at the SEC website. In other W.W. Grainger news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total value of $27,524,551.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $111,650,478.38. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,281,004.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.50% 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.