Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC Lowers Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC lessened its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 7.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 333 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $4,578,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 92,754.3% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 87,283 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $906,700,000 after buying an additional 87,189 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at $55,815,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,653.7% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 56,978 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $60,058,000 after acquiring an additional 53,729 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,997,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,074,702,000 after buying an additional 45,369 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 8.5% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 546,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $568,188,000 after buying an additional 42,866 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. UBS Group initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. Northcoast Research began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Loop Capital lifted their target price on 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. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,140.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total value of $10,705,553.68. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,895,021.36. The trade was a 68.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 675 shares in the company, valued at $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,406 shares of company stock valued at $11,634,643. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE:GWW opened at $1,120.63 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.18. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $1,126.79 and a 200-day moving average of $1,056.43. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $868.53 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.98 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $9.43 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.23%.

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.