Optas LLC Increases Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Optas LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,382 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Optas LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,365,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 46.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 320 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $338,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 24.5% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 4,718 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,915,000 after acquiring an additional 927 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 17,822 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $19,051,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 694.1% in the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 76,674 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $80,818,000 after acquiring an additional 67,018 shares during the period. Finally, PUREfi Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $337,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total transaction of $301,056.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 3,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,622,348.80. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 10,235 shares in the company, valued at $10,205,523.20. This trade represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,205 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,320 over the last quarter. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,063.31 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $1,044.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,051.84. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $888.75 and a 1 year high of $1,227.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.49 and a quick ratio of 1.49.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.51 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. The company’s revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.62 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $2.26 per share. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 23.21%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on GWW. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. William Blair upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Wolfe Research lowered 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 report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,123.13.

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.