Analysts Set W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Price Target at $1,118.14

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the eight brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $1,118.1429.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on GWW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,052.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Oppenheimer raised their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,044.00 to $1,047.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 2,339 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,064.73, for a total value of $2,490,403.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,235 shares in the company, valued at $10,897,511.55. This trade represents a 18.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. Kinsale Capital Group Inc. now owns 9,107 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,934,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 419 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $457,000 after buying an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co now owns 373 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $407,000 after buying an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. FSA Advisors Inc. bought a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $548,000. Finally, Kera Capital Partners Inc. bought a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $230,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 3.0%

NYSE GWW opened at $1,168.38 on Friday. W.W. Grainger has a fifty-two week low of $906.52 and a fifty-two week high of $1,218.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 2.83. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,119.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $1,056.38. The stock has a market cap of $55.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.04.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The industrial products company reported $9.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.46 by ($0.01). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.46% and a net margin of 9.51%.The business had revenue of $4.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $9.71 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger will post 43.61 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a $2.49 dividend. This represents a $9.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.54%.

About W.W. Grainger

W.W. Grainger, Inc (NYSE: GWW) is an industrial supply distributor founded in 1927 and headquartered in Lake Forest, Illinois. The company supplies maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) products and services to businesses, institutions and government customers. Over its long history Grainger has developed a broad product assortment and a national distribution network that supports operations across a range of end markets, including manufacturing, healthcare, hospitality, transportation and public sector organizations.

Grainger’s product portfolio spans core categories such as electrical and lighting, safety and personal protective equipment, material handling, motors and power transmission, plumbing and HVAC, fasteners and adhesives, hand and power tools, and janitorial and facility supplies.