The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Buys 68 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 26,877 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 68 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $27,920,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 5.2% during the second 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 in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 324,367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $336,956,000 after acquiring an additional 12,805 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 284,666 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $295,714,000 after purchasing an additional 8,552 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 243,470 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $219,386,000 after purchasing an additional 1,849 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 23.5% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 193,888 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $201,413,000 after purchasing an additional 36,892 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,206.50 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $1,113.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,004.11. The stock has a market cap of $58.76 billion, a PE ratio of 32.71, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.15. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $775.00 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.98 by ($0.11). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The company had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $9.43 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.92 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th will be paid a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 22.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total transaction of $13,481,538.56. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $102,281,004.56. This trade represents a 11.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total value of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,895,021.36. This represents a 68.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 50,900 shares of company stock valued at $52,640,733 in the last 90 days. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on GWW. StockNews.com upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Oppenheimer downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. 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 company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,109.00.

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.