W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc

Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc lessened its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 11.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,987 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 501 shares during the period. Fragasso Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $4,202,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 313.3% during the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 1,521 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,603,000 after acquiring an additional 1,153 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth approximately $202,000. Clark & Stuart Inc acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $1,741,000. Matrix Trust Co boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 584.6% during the 4th quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 89 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 9,609 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $10,128,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 target price for the company. Robert W. Baird raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Oppenheimer lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Northcoast Research started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,140.56.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at $10,513,055.31. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,406 shares of company stock valued at $11,634,643. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

GWW traded up $21.97 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $1,074.45. 128,974 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 213,379. 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 12 month low of $833.50 and a 12 month high of $1,227.66. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,139.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,046.00. The stock has a market cap of $52.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 EPS 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 analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.43 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.94 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s 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.