Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Increases Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 109.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,956 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 1,022 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,062,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Busey Bank lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Busey Bank now owns 615 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $648,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $462,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 43.5% in the 4th quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $507,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Finally, United Community Bank lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. United Community Bank now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $163,000 after buying an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock opened at $1,000.29 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $48.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.84, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 2.49, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $992.33 and a 200-day moving average of $1,072.08. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $874.98 and a 12-month high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.75 by ($0.04). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 52.43% and a net margin of 11.12%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $8.33 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 21.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. William Blair upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $966.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,130.89.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total transaction of $1,160,647.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,205,523.20. This trade represents a 10.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

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.