FIL Ltd Reduces Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

FIL Ltd cut its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 13.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 220,968 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 35,024 shares during the period. FIL Ltd owned approximately 0.45% of W.W. Grainger worth $232,911,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,330,688 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,618,812,000 after buying an additional 40,376 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,194,747 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,256,400,000 after purchasing an additional 27,716 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 28.9% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 514,326 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $542,126,000 after purchasing an additional 115,290 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth about $535,910,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 459,536 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $491,170,000 after purchasing an additional 58,978 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GWW has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. William Blair raised W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wolfe Research cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a "peer perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $966.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $1,130.89.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of GWW traded up $1.07 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $995.07. 37,253 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 252,569. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.49. The company has a market cap of $47.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.20. The stock's 50-day moving average is $993.18 and its 200-day moving average is $1,072.32. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $874.98 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $8.33 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.82%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 10,235 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,205,523.20. The trade was a 10.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 6.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

W.W. Grainger 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.