Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Sells 125 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lessened its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,278 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 125 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $4,352,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 3,178 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,633,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Ardevora Asset Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,075,000. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 1,287 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 13,885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,292,000 after purchasing an additional 1,432 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its position in shares of 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 valued at $90,272,000 after purchasing an additional 6,197 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other news, SVP Matt Fortin sold 511 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.20, for a total value of $467,667.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,848 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,691,289.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW traded down $4.64 on Friday, reaching $910.87. 21,896 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 240,762. The company has a current ratio of 2.19, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market cap of $44.70 billion, a PE ratio of 25.28, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.17. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $925.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $927.37. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $674.41 and a 52-week high of $1,034.18.

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

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th were issued a $2.05 dividend. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.64%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on GWW shares. Stephens upgraded W.W. Grainger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $1,000.00 to $1,250.00 in a research report on Monday, April 29th. StockNews.com downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Robert W. Baird downgraded W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $1,000.00 to $975.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $959.44.

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.