Metis Global Partners LLC Trims Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Metis Global Partners LLC lessened its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 12.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,103 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 286 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,743,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. FMR LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 17.2% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,396,928 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $966,451,000 after acquiring an additional 204,507 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.8% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 751,855 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $520,163,000 after purchasing an additional 13,063 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 8.3% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 625,013 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $432,411,000 after purchasing an additional 47,731 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 455,969 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $315,478,000 after buying an additional 8,366 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 260,210 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $180,024,000 after buying an additional 1,371 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.6 %

GWW stock opened at $945.89 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.19, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $977.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $886.65. The company has a market capitalization of $46.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.12, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $641.95 and a twelve month high of $1,034.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The industrial products company reported $9.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.57 by $0.05. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.94% and a return on equity of 54.31%. The business had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $9.61 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 39.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be paid a $2.05 dividend. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.54%.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,756,231.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on GWW. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. UBS Group lifted their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $809.00 to $907.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Finally, Stephens raised W.W. Grainger from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $1,000.00 to $1,250.00 in a research report on Monday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $938.89.

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.