Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Increases Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 11.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,726 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 473 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $4,981,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 250.0% during the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 43.5% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 111.1% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 38.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 50 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the subject of several analyst reports. Baird R W upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,148.56.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.3 %

GWW stock opened at $1,038.42 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $1,098.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,069.84. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $874.98 and a 12 month high of $1,227.66. The company has a market cap of $50.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.49 and a quick ratio of 1.49.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS 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 previous year, the company posted $8.33 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.18%.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total value of $150,753.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 675 shares in the company, valued at $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.