Tredje AP fonden Has $7.57 Million Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Tredje AP fonden increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 59.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,385 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,120 shares during the period. Tredje AP fonden’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $7,565,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 17.4% in the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,148,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,167,913,000 after purchasing an additional 169,897 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 360,026 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $324,841,000 after buying an additional 17,699 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the second quarter valued at about $281,104,000. FIL Ltd grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 21.4% in 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, Swedbank AB acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the first quarter worth about $159,365,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other W.W. Grainger news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total transaction of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 111,559 shares in the company, valued at approximately $111,650,478.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GWW has been the topic of several research reports. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Friday, June 14th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Robert W. Baird lowered W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $1,000.00 to $975.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $990.00 target price for the company. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,014.11.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE GWW opened at $1,012.63 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.69 billion, a PE ratio of 27.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.16. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $963.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $955.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.30, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $674.41 and a 12 month high of $1,034.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.58 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.35 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 53.25% and a net margin of 10.86%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $9.28 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.75 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.