Securian Asset Management Inc. Has $2.56 Million Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Securian Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,432 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 103 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,563,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 111.1% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at about $47,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on GWW shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. William Blair raised W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. UBS Group began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted 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 note on Tuesday, November 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE GWW opened at $967.57 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $46.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $874.98 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $1,050.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,076.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 period in the prior year, the company posted $8.33 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.18%.

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.