Quest Partners LLC Purchases 941 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Quest Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 55.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,653 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 941 shares during the quarter. Quest Partners LLC's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,756,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth $281,104,000. Swedbank AB bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter worth about $159,365,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 92,754.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 87,283 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $906,700,000 after acquiring an additional 87,189 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 563.3% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 72,300 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $65,232,000 after acquiring an additional 61,400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 67.9% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 143,193 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $129,175,000 after purchasing an additional 57,894 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total value of $150,753.75. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 675 shares in the company, valued at $814,070.25. The trade was a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total transaction of $778,335.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,513,055.31. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 50,900 shares of company stock valued at $52,640,733 over the last ninety days. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 0.5 %

W.W. Grainger stock traded down $6.20 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $1,172.13. The company had a trading volume of 191,789 shares, compared to its average volume of 235,469. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.68. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $772.13 and a 12-month high of $1,227.66. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $1,082.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $990.71. The firm has a market cap of $57.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 1.15.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $9.43 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.92 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on GWW shares. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $925.00 target price for the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $1,280.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $990.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $1,086.50.

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.