Private Advisor Group LLC Has $1.52 Million Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Private Advisor Group LLC lessened its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 3.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 53 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,516,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Swedbank AB raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 23.5% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 193,888 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $201,413,000 after acquiring an additional 36,892 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 19.0% in the 3rd quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 644 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $669,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 32.7% in the 3rd quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 454 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $472,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter valued at $222,000. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,997 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $12,463,000 after acquiring an additional 668 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target 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. UBS Group assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,148.56.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,007.59 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $48.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.03, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.17. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $874.98 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,065.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1,073.98. 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 (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 period in the prior year, the company posted $8.33 EPS. Research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 21.18%.

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.