Valley National Advisers Inc. Boosts Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Valley National Advisers Inc. boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2,542.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,665 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,602 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,728,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 170.0% in the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 250.0% in the third 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 during the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 225.0% in the first 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. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the first quarter worth $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,090.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 2.30 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $1,022.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $967.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $687.55 and a 12 month high of $1,129.92. The company has a market capitalization of $53.27 billion, a PE ratio of 29.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.16.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.58 by $0.18. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.86% and a return on equity of 53.25%. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.35 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $9.28 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.69 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. Shareholders 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 was Monday, August 12th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total transaction of $13,481,538.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at $102,281,004.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of W.W. Grainger 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total transaction of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Baird R W raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 22nd. Oppenheimer lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,043.20.

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.