Hartford Investment Management Co. Has $2.90 Million Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Hartford Investment Management Co. cut its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,747 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 53 shares during the quarter. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,895,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,997,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,074,702,000 after buying an additional 45,369 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,617,149 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,679,911,000 after buying an additional 40,992 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,167,031 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,208,610,000 after buying an additional 28,626 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 546,960 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $568,188,000 after buying an additional 42,866 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 324,367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $336,956,000 after buying an additional 12,805 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,027.47 on Thursday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a one year low of $874.98 and a one year high of $1,227.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.54, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,092.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,070.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.49 and a quick ratio of 1.49.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.75 by ($0.04). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $8.33 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on GWW. Robert W. Baird raised W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Baird R W raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given 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, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,148.56.

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.