First Interstate Bank Cuts Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

First Interstate Bank lowered its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 26.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 355 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 129 shares during the period. First Interstate Bank’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $294,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth about $34,000. Clear Street Markets LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on GWW shares. StockNews.com upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 16th. Loop Capital lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $925.00 to $1,000.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Stephens boosted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $775.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $809.00 to $907.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $913.89.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock traded up $0.02 on Tuesday, hitting $955.44. 198,585 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 231,844. The company has a market cap of $46.94 billion, a PE ratio of 26.39, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.14. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $641.95 and a 52 week high of $1,034.18. The company has a current ratio of 2.88, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $979.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $862.80.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The industrial products company reported $8.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.05 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.04 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.10% and a return on equity of 56.54%. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $7.14 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.26 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 12th were given a dividend of $1.86 per share. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 9th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is presently 20.55%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total transaction of $2,966,586.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,664,629.98. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value of $3,694,339.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,756,231.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total transaction of $2,966,586.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,664,629.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

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.