StockNews.com Downgrades W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) to Hold

StockNews.com downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday.

GWW has been the subject of several other reports. Baird R W upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of 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. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Robert W. Baird raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, UBS Group started 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 for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,092.96 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $1,151.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,027.56. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. W.W. Grainger has a 12-month low of $800.97 and a 12-month high of $1,227.66. The company has a market cap of $53.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.63, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.16.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $9.43 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that W.W. Grainger will post 38.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total transaction of $778,335.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total value of $13,481,538.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. This represents a 11.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 23,398 shares of company stock worth $25,116,181 in the last ninety days. 9.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in GWW. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 250.0% during the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 111.1% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 38.9% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 50 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the third quarter valued at about $75,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by 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.