Regents Gate Capital LLP Takes $3.40 Million Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Regents Gate Capital LLP bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 3,224 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $3,398,000. W.W. Grainger makes up about 1.3% of Regents Gate Capital LLP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of GWW. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.3% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,862 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,934,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. LVW Advisors LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at $265,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 5.0% in the third quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 1,497 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,555,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 8.4% in the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 502 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $522,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Planning Group LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at $208,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on GWW. Baird R W upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Northcoast Research began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a "neutral" rating for the company. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1,148.56.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWW traded up $0.79 on Thursday, reaching $1,028.34. The company's stock had a trading volume of 219,427 shares, compared to its average volume of 296,287. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.57, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.17. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $874.98 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The stock's 50-day moving average is $1,089.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,069.78. 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 - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.75 by ($0.04). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 52.43% and a net margin of 11.12%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $8.33 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio 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.