National Pension Service Has $56.41 Million Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

National Pension Service trimmed its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 53,519 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,390 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $56,412,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GWW. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 694.1% in the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 76,674 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $80,818,000 after acquiring an additional 67,018 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $55,815,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,653.7% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 56,978 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $60,058,000 after acquiring an additional 53,729 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,997,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,074,702,000 after acquiring an additional 45,369 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 546,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $568,188,000 after acquiring an additional 42,866 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on GWW shares. UBS Group began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. 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 report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,148.56.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,012.26 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,064.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1,073.55. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $874.98 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66. The company has a market capitalization of $48.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.49 and a quick ratio of 1.49.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. During the same period last year, the company posted $8.33 EPS. Research 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 declared 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. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 21.18%.

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.