Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC Buys 303 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 12.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,816 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 303 shares during the quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,334,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value of $3,694,339.44. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,756,231.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total transaction of $2,966,586.84. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at $4,664,629.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW traded up $14.73 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $956.80. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 138,897 shares, compared to its average volume of 230,259. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.01 billion, a PE ratio of 26.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 2.88 and a quick ratio of 1.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $979.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $869.76. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $641.95 and a 52 week high of $1,034.18.

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

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 12th were given a $1.86 dividend. 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 is currently 20.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GWW. Stephens lifted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $775.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $809.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $925.00 to $1,000.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $913.89.

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.