W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Receives New Coverage from Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) in a report issued on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm issued an equal weight rating and a $990.00 price objective on the industrial products company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on GWW. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Erste Group Bank reissued a hold rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Friday, June 14th. Robert W. Baird cut W.W. Grainger from an outperform rating to a neutral rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $1,000.00 to $975.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Baird R W cut W.W. Grainger from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $1,014.11.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $948.46 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 2.30 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The business has a 50-day moving average of $951.88 and a 200 day moving average of $953.77. W.W. Grainger has a 12 month low of $674.41 and a 12 month high of $1,034.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.58 by $0.18. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 53.25% and a net margin of 10.86%. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.35 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $9.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger will post 38.71 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.86%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, SVP Matt Fortin sold 511 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $915.20, for a total transaction of $467,667.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,848 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,691,289.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 9.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of GWW. Bfsg LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 170.0% during the 1st quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 27 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Washington Trust Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 225.0% in the first quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 39 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.