Banyan Capital Management Inc. Buys New Shares in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Banyan Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 695 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $662,000. W.W. Grainger comprises 0.3% of Banyan Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 46.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 320 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $338,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 18.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,851 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,816,000 after acquiring an additional 435 shares during the period. GC Wealth Management RIA LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter valued at $315,000. USA Financial Formulas increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 103.0% in the second quarter. USA Financial Formulas now owns 341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $355,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the period. Finally, Pure Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the second quarter worth $287,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on GWW. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,006.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $975.00 target price for the company. Oppenheimer raised W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $1,250.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,045.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,163 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $972.57, for a total value of $11,829,368.91. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 103,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,035,434.45. This represents a 10.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 195 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,023.93, for a total transaction of $199,666.35. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 3,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,249,953.82. This trade represents a 5.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 26,881 shares of company stock valued at $26,157,155. 6.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,081.99 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $893.99 and a 12 month high of $1,130.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 1.59. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $1,014.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $992.40.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $10.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.95 by $0.26. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 49.40% and a net margin of 9.75%.The company had revenue of $4.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $9.87 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th will be given a dividend of $2.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 9th. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 25.35%.

About W.W. Grainger

W.W. Grainger, Inc (NYSE: GWW) is an industrial supply distributor founded in 1927 and headquartered in Lake Forest, Illinois. The company supplies maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) products and services to businesses, institutions and government customers. Over its long history Grainger has developed a broad product assortment and a national distribution network that supports operations across a range of end markets, including manufacturing, healthcare, hospitality, transportation and public sector organizations.

Grainger’s product portfolio spans core categories such as electrical and lighting, safety and personal protective equipment, material handling, motors and power transmission, plumbing and HVAC, fasteners and adhesives, hand and power tools, and janitorial and facility supplies.