Investment House LLC Has $13.78 Million Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Investment House LLC lowered its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 13,074 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 25 shares during the period. Investment House LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $13,781,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Avestar Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.0% in the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 467 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $485,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the period. Busey Bank boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Busey Bank now owns 615 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $648,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the period. Angeles Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $462,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the period. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Welch & Forbes LLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $507,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the subject of several recent research reports. 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 for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley increased 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. 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 for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. William Blair upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE GWW opened at $974.12 on Wednesday. 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’s fifty day moving average price is $1,043.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,076.79. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $874.98 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share 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 prior year, the business earned $8.33 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. W.W. Grainger’s 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.