O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Raises Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 27.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 11,101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 2,408 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $11,701,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Busey Bank raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Busey Bank now owns 615 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $648,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $462,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 43.5% during the fourth quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $507,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Community Bank grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. United Community Bank now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $163,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, William Blair upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW opened at $988.35 on Tuesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $874.98 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,024.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,077.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.66 billion, a PE ratio of 25.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.49.

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 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 last year, the business posted $8.33 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.