Kathmere Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Kathmere Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 597 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 13 shares during the period. Kathmere Capital Management LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $607,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at about $392,470,000. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 8.3% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 625,013 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $432,411,000 after acquiring an additional 47,731 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 82,775.0% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 43,095 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,712,000 after acquiring an additional 43,043 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 240,856 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $199,595,000 after acquiring an additional 42,395 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 75.5% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 43,087 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,706,000 after acquiring an additional 18,542 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Matt Fortin sold 511 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $915.20, for a total transaction of $467,667.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,848 shares in the company, valued at $1,691,289.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $902.24 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $674.41 and a fifty-two week high of $1,034.18. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $928.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $925.64. The company has a market capitalization of $44.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.19.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $9.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.57 by $0.05. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.94% and a return on equity of 54.31%. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.26 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $9.61 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.91%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on GWW. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $975.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Baird R W downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $959.44.

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.