Stephens Upgrades W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) to Overweight

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) was upgraded by investment analysts at Stephens from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Briefing.com reports. The firm presently has a $1,250.00 price target on the industrial products company’s stock, up from their previous price target of $1,000.00. Stephens’ price target would suggest a potential upside of 34.52% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Loop Capital lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $925.00 to $1,000.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $809.00 to $907.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $941.67.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of GWW opened at $929.26 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $979.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $876.26. W.W. Grainger has a 1-year low of $641.95 and a 1-year high of $1,034.18. The stock has a market cap of $45.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.14.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $9.62 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.57 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.26 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.94% and a return on equity of 54.31%. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $9.61 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger will post 39.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value of $3,694,339.44. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total value of $2,966,586.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,664,629.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total transaction of $3,694,339.44. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GWW. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Bfsg LLC bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 275.0% during the 4th quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 45 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

About W.W. Grainger

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.