First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Grows Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 24.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,210 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 234 shares during the quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,257,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of GWW. Norden Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,485,000. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.7% in the first quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 3,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,279,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 3.0% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,222 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,242,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger in the first quarter valued at about $1,135,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 16.5% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 19,590 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $19,929,000 after buying an additional 2,778 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total value of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $111,650,478.38. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total transaction of $13,481,538.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,281,004.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total value of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $111,650,478.38. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,110.72 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.16. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $721.99 and a 52 week high of $1,130.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $1,033.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $970.74.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.58 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.35 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 53.25% and a net margin of 10.86%. The company’s revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $9.28 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 22.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer cut shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Loop Capital increased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,043.20.

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.