W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Shares Sold by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA cut its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 314,441 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 9,926 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 0.65% of W.W. Grainger worth $331,437,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Busey Bank lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Busey Bank now owns 615 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $648,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares during the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 438 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $462,000 after buying an additional 9 shares during the period. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 43.5% in the fourth quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC now owns 481 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $507,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the period. Finally, United Community Bank grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. United Community Bank now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $163,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on GWW. William Blair upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. StockNews.com downgraded 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 dropped 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 1.3 %

GWW opened at $1,006.70 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,019.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,077.19. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $874.98 and a 12 month high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.49 and a quick ratio of 1.49.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS 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 previous year, the business earned $8.33 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.18%.

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.