Quadcap Wealth Management LLC Cuts Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Quadcap Wealth Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,378 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 30 shares during the period. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its stake 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 worth $35,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total transaction 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 approximately $10,205,523.20. This trade represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,042.86, for a total transaction of $793,616.46. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $602,773.08. This represents a 56.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased 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 research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wolfe Research cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $966.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, William Blair upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,120.00.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.3%

GWW opened at $1,069.39 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $996.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,065.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.37 billion, a PE ratio of 27.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.24. 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $874.98 and a 12-month high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.51 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $9.62 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a dividend of $2.26 per share. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.21%.

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.