Empowered Funds LLC Has $2.31 Million Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 27.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 473 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,312,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empirical Finance LLC raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 1,543 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,603,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 6,617 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $6,874,000 after buying an additional 569 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 793 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $824,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Intelligence Driven Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $219,000. Finally, Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,237 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,285,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of GWW opened at $1,172.40 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.78, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $1,086.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $992.40. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $772.13 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The company had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $9.43 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.92 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be paid a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 22.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer cut W.W. Grainger from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Loop Capital raised their price target on W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,109.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total value of $778,335.36. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,513,055.31. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total value of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,379 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,895,021.36. This represents a 68.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 50,900 shares of company stock valued at $52,640,733 in the last 90 days. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.