Banco Santander S.A. Purchases 173 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Banco Santander S.A. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 1.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,756 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $12,212,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in GWW. HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth about $26,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 250.0% in the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 537.5% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 51 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings 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 valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total value of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,559 shares in the company, valued at $111,650,478.38. This trade represents a 19.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total value of $150,753.75. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 three months, insiders sold 50,900 shares of company stock valued at $52,640,733. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE:GWW opened at $1,178.45 on Thursday. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $772.13 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The company has a 50-day moving average of $1,090.24 and a 200 day moving average of $993.70. The firm has a market cap of $57.39 billion, a PE ratio of 31.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.15.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). The business 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%. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.43 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on GWW shares. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research raised W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 22nd. StockNews.com raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Oppenheimer downgraded 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 issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,109.00.

W.W. Grainger Company 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.