W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Purchased by Amalgamated Bank

Amalgamated Bank grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 10,415 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $10,978,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. FourThought Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at about $522,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,377,000. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 45.5% in the fourth quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 470 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $496,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,176,000. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 11.6% during the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 250 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GWW has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. UBS Group initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Northcoast Research started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,148.56.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of GWW opened at $1,003.71 on Wednesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $874.98 and a 52 week 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 firm has a market cap of $48.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.93, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.17. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $1,067.66 and a 200-day moving average of $1,074.45.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.75 by ($0.04). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 52.43% and a net margin of 11.12%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $8.33 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.18%.

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.