UMB Bank n.a. Sells 73 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

UMB Bank n.a. lessened its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,667 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 73 shares during the quarter. UMB Bank n.a.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $9,135,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 250.0% during the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 111.1% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 38.9% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 50 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the third quarter worth $75,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the business’s 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 transaction of $150,753.75. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $814,070.25. The trade was a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total value of $778,335.36. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,406 shares of company stock valued at $11,634,643. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Oppenheimer downgraded W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research upgraded W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE GWW opened at $1,113.05 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $1,133.37 and its 200 day moving average is $1,052.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $855.01 and a 12 month high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market cap of $54.21 billion, a PE ratio of 30.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.98 by ($0.11). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $9.43 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.23%.

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.