JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $787.13 Million Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 34.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 746,767 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 388,425 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 1.53% of W.W. Grainger worth $787,132,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 77,203 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $81,371,000 after acquiring an additional 5,443 shares in the last quarter. Korea Investment CORP raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 63.0% during the 4th quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 35,542 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $37,463,000 after purchasing an additional 13,739 shares in the last quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at $738,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 5,231 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,514,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 5,837 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $6,152,000 after acquiring an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GWW has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. William Blair upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $973.54 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $1,027.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,076.43. The company has a market capitalization of $46.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.15, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $874.98 and a 12-month high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 quarter last year, the company earned $8.33 EPS. On average, analysts forecast 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.84%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.18%.

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.