W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by AlphaQuest LLC

AlphaQuest LLC trimmed its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 40.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,579 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,074 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,664,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. United Community Bank grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. United Community Bank now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $163,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 459,536 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $491,170,000 after acquiring an additional 58,978 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 205.3% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 116 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Finally, AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 124.2% during the fourth quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 21,111 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,255,000 after purchasing an additional 11,694 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 1.1 %

GWW opened at $1,007.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.49. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a one year low of $874.98 and a one year high of $1,227.66. The company has a market cap of $48.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.02, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,054.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,076.00.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.75 by ($0.04). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $8.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group started coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,151.50.

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.