Amundi Buys 58,978 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Amundi raised its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 14.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 459,536 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 58,978 shares during the quarter. Amundi’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $491,170,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 43.5% in the 4th quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 111.1% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter valued at $75,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GWW. UBS Group began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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. StockNews.com downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock opened at $1,007.06 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $874.98 and a 12 month 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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $1,054.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,076.00. The stock has a market cap of $48.56 billion, a PE ratio of 26.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released 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 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 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.