Donald G. Macpherson Sells 27,502 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Stock

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total transaction of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 111,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $111,650,478.38. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.1 %

W.W. Grainger stock traded down $1.35 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $1,012.63. The stock had a trading volume of 158,573 shares, compared to its average volume of 239,054. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $674.41 and a 52-week high of $1,034.18. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $963.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $955.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The stock has a market cap of $49.69 billion, a PE ratio of 27.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.16.

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

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.64%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 119.5% during 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 acquiring an additional 1,287 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 36.6% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 9,506 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,664,000 after buying an additional 2,548 shares during the period. UBS Group AG raised its position in 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 during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,201.6% in the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $748,000 after acquiring an additional 769 shares during the period. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 11.2% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 59,822 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $60,857,000 after acquiring an additional 6,042 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Baird R W downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Robert W. Baird lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $1,000.00 to $975.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,014.11.

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.