Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Sells 109 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lowered its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.9% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,679 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 109 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,743,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 203 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $168,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 10.0% in the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 121 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $124,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.7% in the first quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $471,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the period. Copperwynd Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Copperwynd Financial LLC now owns 347 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $288,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the period. Finally, Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC now owns 339 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock traded up $10.43 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $952.79. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 361,136 shares, compared to its average volume of 270,770. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $924.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $944.58. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $674.41 and a 12-month high of $1,034.18. The company has a market cap of $46.75 billion, a PE ratio of 26.31, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.30.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.58 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.35 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 53.25% and a net margin of 10.86%. The business’s revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $9.28 earnings per share. Analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th will be given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 12th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.86%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Matt Fortin sold 511 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.20, for a total value of $467,667.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,848 shares in the company, valued at $1,691,289.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 9.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Robert W. Baird downgraded W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $1,000.00 to $975.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Stephens upgraded W.W. Grainger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $1,000.00 to $1,250.00 in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,017.13.

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.