Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Has $25.22 Million Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC cut its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 23,928 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 591 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $25,222,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of GWW. Dakota Wealth Management increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 3,287 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,465,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 13,735 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,017,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,867 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $13,562,000 after purchasing an additional 870 shares during the last quarter. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 155.6% in the fourth quarter. Mogy Joel R Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 4,064 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,284,000 after purchasing an additional 2,474 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 24.5% in the 4th quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. now owns 543 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $572,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total transaction of $10,705,553.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,379 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,895,021.36. This trade represents a 68.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total transaction of $778,335.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,406 shares of company stock worth $11,634,643. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

NYSE GWW opened at $1,122.01 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,125.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,057.85. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $870.99 and a twelve month high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.64 billion, a PE ratio of 30.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. 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 previous year, the business posted $9.43 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.95 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a $2.05 dividend. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.23%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on GWW shares. StockNews.com lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 target price for the company. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,140.56.

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.