W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Bath Savings Trust Co

Bath Savings Trust Co trimmed its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 432 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 10 shares during the period. Bath Savings Trust Co’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $455,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth about $26,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 250.0% during the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings 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 last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 38.9% during 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 during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 3rd quarter worth $75,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on GWW. StockNews.com downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price 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 price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wolfe Research raised W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of GWW traded up $5.41 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $1,059.42. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 125,388 shares, compared to its average volume of 166,103. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $806.08 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.18. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $1,143.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,041.75. 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 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 company 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%. W.W. Grainger’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $9.43 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This trade represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total value of $778,335.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at $10,513,055.31. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 10,406 shares of company stock valued at $11,634,643. 9.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.