Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Sells 759 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. reduced its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 22.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,649 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 759 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,792,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter valued at about $848,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 313.3% in the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 1,521 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,603,000 after acquiring an additional 1,153 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 72.6% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $22,901,000 after acquiring an additional 9,270 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 27.0% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,312,000 after acquiring an additional 473 shares during the period. Finally, Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $1,741,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GWW has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Baird R W raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,140.56.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 675 shares in the company, valued at $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 10,406 shares of company stock valued at $11,634,643. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW opened at $1,122.98 on Thursday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $866.03 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,127.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,055.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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). The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.43 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.23%.

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.