Janus Henderson Group PLC Grows Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,610 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $6,975,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bancreek Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,687,000. Columbus Macro LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 484.2% in the 4th quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 5,830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,145,000 after acquiring an additional 4,832 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 29.2% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,932,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 35.8% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 959 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $996,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $399,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

GWW opened at $1,102.43 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a market cap of $52.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.48, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.24. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $874.98 and a 52-week high of $1,227.66. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,000.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,065.22.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.51 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. The company’s revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.62 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a $2.26 dividend. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 23.21%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total value of $1,160,647.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,235 shares in the company, valued at $10,205,523.20. This represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,042.86, for a total transaction of $793,616.46. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $602,773.08. This trade represents a 56.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of 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. William Blair raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $966.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,120.00.

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.