King Luther Capital Management Corp Sells 32 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

King Luther Capital Management Corp lowered its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,385 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 32 shares during the quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $5,676,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in GWW. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 43.5% during the 4th quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 33 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 111.1% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 38 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on GWW shares. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on 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. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,280.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,113.00 to $1,112.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,151.50.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 3.4 %

GWW stock opened at $981.16 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 2.49 and a quick ratio of 1.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $874.98 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66. The business has a 50-day moving average of $1,052.04 and a 200-day moving average of $1,076.94.

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 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 quarter in the prior year, the business posted $8.33 earnings per share. On average, sell-side 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 firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $2.05 per share. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is presently 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.