W.W. Grainger, Inc. Plans Quarterly Dividend of $2.05 (NYSE:GWW)

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, January 29th,RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of 2.05 per share by the industrial products company on Saturday, March 1st. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%.

W.W. Grainger has raised its dividend payment by an average of 7.8% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 35 years. W.W. Grainger has a payout ratio of 17.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect W.W. Grainger to earn $41.91 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $8.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 19.6%.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,113.89 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.19, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger has a 1-year low of $874.98 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $1,122.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,063.45.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.98 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. W.W. Grainger’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $9.43 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger will post 38.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total value of $150,753.75. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This trade represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,105.59, for a total value of $778,335.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at $10,513,055.31. The trade was a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,406 shares of company stock valued at $11,634,643. Corporate insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Northcoast Research assumed coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. StockNews.com lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Loop Capital increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,140.56.

W.W. Grainger Company 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.