W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Stifel Financial Corp

Stifel Financial Corp trimmed its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 419,482 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 9,504 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp owned about 0.86% of W.W. Grainger worth $442,183,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GWW. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter worth about $848,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 1,153 shares in the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,741,000. Bancreek Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at $3,687,000. Finally, Czech National Bank boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 9,609 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $10,128,000 after acquiring an additional 558 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on GWW. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target 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 note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wolfe Research cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, William Blair raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1,130.89.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total transaction of $1,160,647.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,235 shares in the company, valued at $10,205,523.20. This trade represents a 10.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company's stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 2.8 %

GWW stock traded up $27.94 during trading on Thursday, hitting $1,020.26. The company had a trading volume of 246,375 shares, compared to its average volume of 254,280. 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 market capitalization of $49.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.36, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $986.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,069.56. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $874.98 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS 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 firm posted $8.33 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.