W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lessened its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 51.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,408 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,585 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,540,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Objective Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the third quarter worth approximately $286,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 225.0% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 78 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Townsend & Associates Inc increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.6% during the third quarter. Townsend & Associates Inc now owns 16,811 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $18,366,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Pegasus Partners Ltd. increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 20.4% during the third quarter. Pegasus Partners Ltd. now owns 589 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $612,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the third quarter worth approximately $295,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on GWW shares. Baird R W upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $990.00 target price for the company. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of 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. One 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 company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,058.50.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 1.5 %

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,220.93 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $1,059.24 and its 200-day moving average is $981.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $772.13 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66. The company has a market cap of $59.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.10, a PEG ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.15.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $9.43 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.91 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be given a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.67%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger 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 transaction of $10,705,553.68. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,379 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,895,021.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 4,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,895,021.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of W.W. Grainger 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 transaction of $778,335.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at $10,513,055.31. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 50,775 shares of company stock worth $52,489,979. 9.50% of the stock is 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.