W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Stock Holdings Boosted by Huntington National Bank

Huntington National Bank lifted its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 6.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,862 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,934,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GWW. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 17.4% in the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,148,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,167,913,000 after acquiring an additional 169,897 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 360,026 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $324,841,000 after purchasing an additional 17,699 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at approximately $281,104,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 0.8% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 243,470 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $219,386,000 after buying an additional 1,849 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB grew its position 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 buying an additional 36,892 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GWW shares. Wolfe Research raised W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 22nd. Robert W. Baird upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,086.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total value of $150,753.75. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total value of $27,524,551.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 111,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $111,650,478.38. The trade was a 19.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 50,900 shares of company stock worth $52,640,733. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,178.33 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $1,078.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $988.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.38 billion, a PE ratio of 31.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.15. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $772.13 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 1.68.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $9.43 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.91 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be paid a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.23%.

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.