Deidra C. Merriwether Sells 1,164 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Stock

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total value 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 $10,205,523.20. The trade was a 10.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 3.2 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock traded down $32.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $972.85. 388,390 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 248,776. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,017.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,076.46. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $46.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.20. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $874.98 and a twelve month high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $8.33 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.18%.

Institutional Trading of W.W. Grainger

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the third quarter worth approximately $848,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 313.3% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 1,521 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,603,000 after purchasing an additional 1,153 shares during the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at $1,741,000. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 72.6% during the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,901,000 after buying an additional 9,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bancreek Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth $3,687,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.