Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Has $675,000 Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 664 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 15 shares during the quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $675,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 3,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,633,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Ardevora Asset Management LLP bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth about $11,075,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 119.5% in the 4th quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 2,364 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,959,000 after buying an additional 1,287 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 13,885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $11,292,000 after buying an additional 1,432 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 108,933 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $90,272,000 after buying an additional 6,197 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other W.W. Grainger 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 value of $467,667.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,848 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,691,289.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 9.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Oppenheimer increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Stephens upgraded W.W. Grainger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $1,000.00 to $1,250.00 in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Robert W. Baird lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $1,000.00 to $975.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $975.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $959.44.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 2.4 %

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $917.97 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $926.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $927.54. The company has a current ratio of 2.19, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $674.41 and a 1-year high of $1,034.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.17.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $9.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.57 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.26 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 54.31% and a net margin of 10.94%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $9.61 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.22 earnings per share for the current 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 $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.89%. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 10th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.64%.

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.