Champlain Investment Partners LLC Purchases New Shares in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Champlain Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 53,730 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,815,000. Champlain Investment Partners LLC owned 0.11% of W.W. Grainger at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of GWW. EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 537.5% in the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 51 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Keeley Teton Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the first quarter worth $203,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 5.8% during the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 3,963 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,032,000 after buying an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the first quarter valued at $105,000. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter worth about $201,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total transaction of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,379 shares in the company, valued at $4,895,021.36. This represents a 68.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 675 shares in the company, valued at $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 50,900 shares of company stock worth $52,640,733. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,206.65 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,098.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $996.92. 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 52 week low of $772.13 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The firm has a market cap of $58.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 1.15.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 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 the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $9.43 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be given a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GWW has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Wolfe Research raised shares of W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 22nd. Baird R W upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,109.00.

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.