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

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

W.W. Grainger has increased its dividend payment by an average of 7.8% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 35 consecutive years. W.W. Grainger has a payout ratio of 17.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities 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 Price Performance

GWW traded down $17.40 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $1,113.89. The stock had a trading volume of 257,217 shares, compared to its average volume of 278,467. W.W. Grainger has a 1-year low of $874.98 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $1,124.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1,063.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

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). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.80% and a return on equity of 51.78%. The company had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $9.43 EPS. W.W. Grainger’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger will post 38.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 704 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 9,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,513,055.31. This trade represents a 6.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 125 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,206.03, for a total transaction of $150,753.75. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $814,070.25. This represents a 15.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,406 shares of company stock worth $11,634,643. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $990.00 to $1,215.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Robert W. Baird raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Northcoast Research began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.