Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 11.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 498 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $517,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 250.0% in the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 111.1% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 38.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 50 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on GWW. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Loop Capital increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Oppenheimer downgraded W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective on the stock. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,109.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were 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 trade represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total transaction of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 4,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,895,021.36. This trade represents a 68.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 50,900 shares of company stock valued at $52,640,733. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,205.34 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,117.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,006.28. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $775.00 and a 12 month high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.67, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.68.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The business had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $9.43 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.92 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were paid a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.23%.

W.W. Grainger 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.