W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by First Affirmative Financial Network

First Affirmative Financial Network lessened its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 4.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 519 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 25 shares during the period. First Affirmative Financial Network’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $513,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 100,843.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 692,469 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $684,042,000 after acquiring an additional 691,783 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth $535,910,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth $267,529,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth $175,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 28.9% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 514,326 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $542,126,000 after acquiring an additional 115,290 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total transaction of $301,056.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,369 shares in the company, valued at $3,622,348.80. The trade was a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total transaction of $1,160,647.68. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,205,523.20. This represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 2,205 shares of company stock worth $2,255,320. 6.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,094.92 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $1,032.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,057.20. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $876.28 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.21.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.51 by $0.35. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.62 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $2.26 per share. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.21%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on GWW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. William Blair upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $966.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,123.13.

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.