SBI Securities Co. Ltd. Invests $783,000 in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 743 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $783,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 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 acquiring an additional 36,892 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,456 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,513,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 10.6% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 12,357 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $13,500,000 after purchasing an additional 1,181 shares during the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 46.4% during the third quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 429 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northeast Investment Management bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $999.11 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.81, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.17. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a one year low of $874.98 and a one year high of $1,227.66. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,061.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,075.91. The company has a current ratio of 2.49, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the firm posted $8.33 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.18%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target 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. UBS Group began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. One research 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,148.56.

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.