Avestar Capital LLC Raises Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Avestar Capital LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 494 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the quarter. Avestar Capital LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $521,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Busey Bank increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Busey Bank now owns 615 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $648,000 after buying an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $462,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares during the period. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 43.5% during the fourth quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Virtue Capital Management LLC raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Northcoast Research began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Oppenheimer cut shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,148.56.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,028.34 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.57, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.17. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $874.98 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The business’s 50 day moving average is $1,089.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,069.78. 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 released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.75 by ($0.04). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $8.33 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.18%.

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.