Great Lakes Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC lowered its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 6.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,358 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 169 shares during the quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,485,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 128 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $135,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,313 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,384,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. PFG Advisors boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 408 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 13,549 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,281,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 526.2% in the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 55,555 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $58,558,000 after purchasing an additional 46,683 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $968.06 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $46.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.49, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $874.98 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $1,046.85 and its 200 day moving average is $1,076.04.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the firm earned $8.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid 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 0.85%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on GWW. Royal Bank of Canada cut 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. William Blair upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. StockNews.com downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. 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 note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.