Guided Capital Wealth Management LLC Takes $1.62 Million Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Guided Capital Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 1,540 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,623,000. W.W. Grainger accounts for 1.5% of Guided Capital Wealth Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 111.1% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on GWW. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Baird R W upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,148.56.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.8 %

GWW opened at $1,046.62 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $1,095.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,070.37. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $874.98 and a twelve month high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.04, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.17.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $8.33 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.78%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.