State of Tennessee Department of Treasury Reduces Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

State of Tennessee Department of Treasury lowered its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,817 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 530 shares during the period. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $10,348,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of GWW. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the third quarter worth $848,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH increased its stake 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 valued at $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 $1,741,000. Bancreek Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at about $3,687,000. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 9,609 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $10,128,000 after acquiring an additional 558 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on GWW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased 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 report 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 on the stock. in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased 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 report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, William Blair upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1,130.89.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW traded down $1.71 on Monday, reaching $1,012.16. The company had a trading volume of 146,549 shares, compared to its average volume of 252,524. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $874.98 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The company has a market cap of $48.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.20. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $986.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,070.05.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 prior year, the company earned $8.33 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,235 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,205,523.20. This trade represents a 10.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 6.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.