W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 44.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,419 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,951 shares during the period. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,005,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GWW. Norges Bank acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $258,792,000. FMR LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 17.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,396,928 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $966,451,000 after purchasing an additional 204,507 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 1,568.4% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 165,035 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $85,122,000 after buying an additional 155,143 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 24.9% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 654,682 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $364,168,000 after buying an additional 130,519 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,027,150 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $706,047,000 after buying an additional 100,380 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total transaction of $3,694,339.44. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,756,231.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total transaction of $2,966,586.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,664,629.98. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total transaction of $3,694,339.44. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on GWW. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $825.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, December 20th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Stephens increased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $775.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $913.89.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.0 %

NYSE GWW opened at $955.44 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $979.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $862.80. The company has a market capitalization of $46.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.14. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $641.95 and a 12 month high of $1,034.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 2.88 and a quick ratio of 1.64.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 2nd. The industrial products company reported $8.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.05 by $0.28. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 56.54% and a net margin of 11.10%. The firm had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $7.14 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 12th were issued a dividend of $1.86 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 9th. This represents a $7.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.55%.

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.