High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC Trims Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC reduced its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 580 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 20 shares during the period. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $611,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of GWW. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 111.1% in the third 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. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 38.9% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 50 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GWW has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of 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. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company 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 research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, StockNews.com cut W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. 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 issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,140.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total value of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 4,379 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,895,021.36. This represents a 68.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 675 shares in the company, valued at $814,070.25. The trade was a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,406 shares of company stock worth $11,634,643. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.1 %

GWW opened at $1,122.01 on Monday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $870.99 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,125.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,059.99. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a market capitalization of $54.64 billion, a PE ratio of 30.41, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released 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). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The company had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $9.43 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.95 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 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.