W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Stock Position Raised by Jag Capital Management LLC

Jag Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 66.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,332 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,715 shares during the quarter. W.W. Grainger comprises about 1.8% of Jag Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Jag Capital Management LLC's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $14,888,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Optas LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Optas LLC now owns 1,353 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,221,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,191 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,237,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 284 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 463 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $418,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Garner Asset Management Corp raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 1,635 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,476,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total value of $778,335.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total transaction of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,559 shares of the company's stock, valued at $111,650,478.38. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total value of $778,335.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,513,055.31. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 50,775 shares of company stock valued at $52,489,979. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company's stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:GWW traded up $18.58 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $1,220.93. The company had a trading volume of 223,847 shares, compared to its average volume of 235,388. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $772.13 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The firm has a market cap of $59.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,054.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $979.58.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last released 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $9.43 EPS. Research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.91 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th will be paid a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the topic of several research reports. Oppenheimer lowered W.W. Grainger from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird raised W.W. Grainger from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com raised W.W. Grainger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1,058.50.

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.