Ibex Wealth Advisors Has $396,000 Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Ibex Wealth Advisors trimmed its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 92.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 376 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 4,645 shares during the quarter. Ibex Wealth Advisors' holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $396,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 92,754.3% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 87,283 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $906,700,000 after buying an additional 87,189 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the third quarter valued at approximately $55,815,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,653.7% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 56,978 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $60,058,000 after buying an additional 53,729 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,997,191 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,074,702,000 after buying an additional 45,369 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 8.5% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 546,960 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $568,188,000 after buying an additional 42,866 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on GWW shares. Oppenheimer downgraded W.W. Grainger from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. Bank of America began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $925.00 price target for the company. Baird R W upgraded W.W. Grainger from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $1,140.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 675 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This trade represents a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at $10,513,055.31. This represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,406 shares of company stock worth $11,634,643 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company's stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock traded up $9.03 on Thursday, reaching $1,123.04. The company had a trading volume of 118,509 shares, compared to its average volume of 269,534. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $1,122.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,063.45. 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 52-week low of $874.98 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The firm has a market cap of $54.69 billion, a PE ratio of 30.44, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $9.98 by ($0.11). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $9.43 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

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.