American Century Companies Inc. Increases Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 60,711 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 712 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of W.W. Grainger worth $63,993,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Avestar Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.0% during the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $485,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Busey Bank grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Busey Bank now owns 615 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $648,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $462,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 43.5% in the 4th quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Welch & Forbes LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $507,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of GWW opened at $989.47 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.49 and a quick ratio of 1.49. The company has a market cap of $47.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.56, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $874.98 and a 12 month high of $1,227.66. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $1,034.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,077.68.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.75 by ($0.04). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 52.43% and a net margin of 11.12%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $8.33 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on GWW shares. William Blair raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,151.50.

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.