W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Simmons Bank

Simmons Bank trimmed its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 35 shares during the period. Simmons Bank’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $235,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter valued at about $41,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 9.4% during the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 561 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $570,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger in the first quarter valued at approximately $487,000. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 78.9% in the 1st quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 11,783 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $11,987,000 after purchasing an additional 5,195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cynosure Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $332,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total value of $778,335.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,513,055.31. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. This represents a 11.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 currently owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock opened at $1,175.62 on Friday. 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 debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.25 billion, a PE ratio of 31.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 1.15. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,073.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $986.32.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its earnings results 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 analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $9.43 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on GWW. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Wolfe Research raised W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 22nd. UBS Group initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Baird R W raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,086.50.

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.