Avestar Capital LLC Purchases 27 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Avestar Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 5.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor 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 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 250.0% during the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 111.1% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW opened at $1,028.34 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $1,089.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,069.78. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $874.98 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.17.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly 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 return on equity of 52.43% and a net margin of 11.12%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $8.33 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GWW. Oppenheimer cut W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped 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. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,148.56.

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.