Whipplewood Advisors LLC Purchases New Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 135 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $142,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter valued at about $848,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 313.3% during the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 1,521 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,603,000 after buying an additional 1,153 shares in the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,741,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 27.0% during the 3rd 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. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 72.6% during the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,901,000 after buying an additional 9,270 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on GWW shares. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted 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 research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,148.56.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.4 %

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,012.26 on Friday. 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 $48.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.17. 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 has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,064.60 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,073.55.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business earned $8.33 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 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.