W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Given New $1,125.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) had its price target increased by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 4.17% from the company’s current price.

Several other analysts also recently commented on GWW. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $966.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. William Blair raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,123.13.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,079.99 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $51.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.24. The company’s 50 day moving average is $1,018.56 and its 200 day moving average is $1,062.31. W.W. Grainger has a twelve month low of $874.98 and a twelve month high of $1,227.66. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.51 by $0.35. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 52.43%. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.31 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $9.62 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 280 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,075.20, for a total transaction of $301,056.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,622,348.80. This represents a 7.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 761 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,042.86, for a total transaction of $793,616.46. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 578 shares in the company, valued at $602,773.08. The trade was a 56.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,205 shares of company stock worth $2,255,320 in the last 90 days. 6.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of W.W. Grainger

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 100,843.0% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 692,469 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $684,042,000 after acquiring an additional 691,783 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $535,910,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the first quarter worth $285,574,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $267,529,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $175,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.