Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV Trims Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV cut its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,449 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 444 shares during the quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $7,853,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the second quarter valued at $281,104,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 92,754.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 87,283 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $906,700,000 after buying an additional 87,189 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 563.3% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 72,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $65,232,000 after acquiring an additional 61,400 shares during the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 3rd quarter worth about $55,815,000. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 43.9% in the second quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 154,324 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $139,237,000 after acquiring an additional 47,053 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on GWW shares. Robert W. Baird raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price objective for the company. Baird R W upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,067.97 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,140.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,043.14. The company has a market cap of $52.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.95, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.18. 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 one year low of $806.08 and a one year high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $9.43 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.77%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total value of $150,753.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This trade represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,379 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,895,021.36. This represents a 68.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,406 shares of company stock valued at $11,634,643 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

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.