Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lowered its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 34.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,206 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 628 shares during the quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,000,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Concord Wealth Partners bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $542,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 110 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Mach 1 Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth about $244,000. Savant Capital LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 2,349 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,947,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 346 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value of $3,694,339.44. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total transaction of $2,966,586.84. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,664,629.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value of $3,694,339.44. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the topic of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on W.W. Grainger from $809.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Stephens raised W.W. Grainger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $1,000.00 to $1,250.00 in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Loop Capital dropped their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $975.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $938.89.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of GWW opened at $932.74 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $977.98 and its 200 day moving average is $881.00. The company has a market capitalization of $45.77 billion, a PE ratio of 25.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $641.95 and a 12-month high of $1,034.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.19, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $9.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.57 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.26 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 54.31% and a net margin of 10.94%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $9.61 EPS. Research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be paid a $2.05 dividend. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is presently 20.54%.

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.