Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Has $1.25 Million Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund reduced its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 42.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,265 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 923 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,250,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth approximately $54,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,164 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $997.12, for a total value of $1,160,647.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,205,523.20. This represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 value of $301,056.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,622,348.80. The trade was a 7.67% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,205 shares of company stock valued at $2,255,320 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW opened at $1,038.39 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 2.74. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $1,054.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,044.58. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $888.75 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.51 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.31 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.28% and a net margin of 11.08%. W.W. Grainger’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $9.62 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.05. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.21%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $966.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. William Blair raised W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,097.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,123.13.

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.