W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Acquired by Huntington National Bank

Huntington National Bank lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,862 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 120 shares during the quarter. Huntington National Bank’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,934,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the second quarter worth $26,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 250.0% in the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter valued at about $41,000. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 537.5% during the first quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 51 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total value of $13,481,538.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. This represents a 11.65 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 675 shares in the company, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 50,900 shares of company stock worth $52,640,733 in the last ninety days. 9.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on GWW shares. Baird R W upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Oppenheimer lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,086.50.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,178.33 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $1,078.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $988.02. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $772.13 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.94, a P/E/G ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.15.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $9.43 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.91 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.23%.

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.