W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the thirteen analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $1,123.13.

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. William Blair raised W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research cut W.W. Grainger from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $966.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, April 3rd.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,042.86, for a total value of $793,616.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $602,773.08. This represents a 56.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total value of $1,160,647.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,205,523.20. The trade was a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 2,205 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,320. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 100,843.0% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 692,469 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $684,042,000 after acquiring an additional 691,783 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $535,910,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the first quarter worth $285,574,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $267,529,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $175,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE GWW opened at $1,085.85 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.05, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.21. W.W. Grainger has a twelve month low of $888.75 and a twelve month high of $1,227.66. The company has a current ratio of 2.49, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $1,035.80 and a 200 day moving average of $1,054.74.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.51 by $0.35. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 52.43% and a net margin of 11.12%. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $9.62 EPS. W.W. Grainger’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $2.26 dividend. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.21%.

About W.W. Grainger

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.