W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

StockNews.com downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Thursday morning.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Robert W. Baird raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Loop Capital lifted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,109.00.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,081.55 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $1,150.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,026.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.67 billion, a PE ratio of 29.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.68. W.W. Grainger has a 1 year low of $800.97 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The company had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $9.43 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger will post 38.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.23%.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total transaction of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,379 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,895,021.36. The trade was a 68.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The shares were 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 owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at $102,281,004.56. This represents a 11.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,398 shares of company stock worth $25,116,181 over the last ninety days. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of GWW. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at $848,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 27.0% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,312,000 after buying an additional 473 shares in the last quarter. Concord Asset Management LLC VA raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 26.7% in the third quarter. Concord Asset Management LLC VA now owns 2,285 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,374,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 72.6% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $22,901,000 after buying an additional 9,270 shares during the period. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 7,146 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,424,000 after acquiring an additional 537 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

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.