Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN Has $154,000 Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN trimmed its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 24.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 151 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 48 shares during the quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $154,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 978,154 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $810,586,000 after buying an additional 12,445 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 689,090 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $571,042,000 after purchasing an additional 11,460 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 625,013 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $432,411,000 after purchasing an additional 47,731 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $392,470,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 440,860 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $365,334,000 after purchasing an additional 10,940 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GWW. Stephens upgraded W.W. Grainger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $1,000.00 to $1,250.00 in a report on Monday, April 29th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $975.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Erste Group Bank restated a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Baird R W downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $959.44.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, SVP Matt Fortin sold 511 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.20, for a total value of $467,667.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 1,848 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,691,289.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.3 %

GWW stock traded down $2.46 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $915.51. 128,957 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 243,521. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $925.21 and its 200-day moving average is $927.37. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $674.41 and a 12 month high of $1,034.18. The company has a market cap of $44.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.28, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $9.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.57 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.26 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 54.31% and a net margin of 10.94%. W.W. Grainger’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $9.61 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.22 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.64%.

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.