Dorsey Wright & Associates Has $4.31 Million Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Dorsey Wright & Associates grew its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,090 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the quarter. Dorsey Wright & Associates’ holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $4,311,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,330,688 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,618,812,000 after acquiring an additional 40,376 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 2.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,997,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,074,702,000 after purchasing an additional 45,369 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,167,031 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,208,610,000 after buying an additional 28,626 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $535,910,000. Finally, Amundi grew its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 459,536 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $491,170,000 after buying an additional 58,978 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on GWW shares. 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 raised W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target 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 note on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $973.54 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $874.98 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $1,027.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,077.12. The stock has a market cap of $46.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.15, a P/E/G 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 (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly 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 return on equity of 52.43% and a net margin of 11.12%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $8.33 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.84%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 21.18%.

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.