Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Reduces Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI decreased its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 3.0% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,199 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 69 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,172,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hemington Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.9% in the first quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 1,139 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,125,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. AXS Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 13.1% in the first quarter. AXS Investments LLC now owns 1,294 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,278,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.1% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,388,378 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,322,801,000 after buying an additional 57,690 shares during the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 20.2% during the first quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,926 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,903,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 3.2% during the first quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 323 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $319,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of GWW opened at $943.01 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $1,040.45 and its 200 day moving average is $1,030.07. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $893.99 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.10 billion, a PE ratio of 23.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.82.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.07 by ($0.10). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 49.63%. The firm had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $9.76 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be given a dividend of $2.26 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 11th. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 22.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total transaction of $301,056.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 3,369 shares in the company, valued at $3,622,348.80. The trade was a 7.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 6.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $950.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,176.00 to $1,007.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,215.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,080.38.

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.