Liberty One Investment Management LLC Acquires 25 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Liberty One Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 279 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $294,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of GWW. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at about $848,000. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 313.3% during the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 1,521 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,603,000 after buying an additional 1,153 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 27.0% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,226 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,312,000 after acquiring an additional 473 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 72.6% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 22,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,901,000 after buying an additional 9,270 shares during the period. Finally, Concord Asset Management LLC VA lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 26.7% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Asset Management LLC VA now owns 2,285 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,374,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $814,070.25. This trade represents a 15.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 9,577 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,117.84, for a total transaction of $10,705,553.68. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,379 shares in the company, valued at $4,895,021.36. This trade represents a 68.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,406 shares of company stock valued at $11,634,643 over the last three months. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of GWW opened at $1,113.05 on Monday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $855.01 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.17, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $1,133.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,052.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $9.43 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 38.97 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were given a dividend of $2.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Loop Capital raised their target price on 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. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 22nd. UBS Group initiated coverage on 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. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average 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.