Insider Selling: W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) SVP Sells $1,051,325.24 in Stock

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) SVP Jonny Leroy sold 854 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.06, for a total transaction of $1,051,325.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 1,554 shares in the company, valued at $1,913,067.24. This trade represents a 35.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE:GWW opened at $1,271.77 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $906.52 and a 12 month high of $1,286.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.04 billion, a PE ratio of 34.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $1,135.50 and its 200 day moving average is $1,069.55.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. The business had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.43 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a dividend of $2.49 per share. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This represents a $9.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.79%.

W.W. Grainger News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting W.W. Grainger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: KeyCorp raised multiple earnings estimates for W.W. Grainger, including FY2026, Q2 2026, Q3 2026, and several 2027 periods, signaling improved expectations for profitability and growth. W.W. Grainger stock page
• Positive Sentiment: The company recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, with revenue up 10.1% year over year, and management raised full-year guidance, which supports the stock’s recent strength. W.W. Grainger earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: W.W. Grainger also increased its quarterly dividend, reinforcing confidence in cash flow and shareholder returns. W.W. Grainger dividend update
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and investors are focused on post-earnings commentary, including margin trends and whether the company can sustain its guidance. WW Grainger’s Q1 earnings call: Our top 5 analyst questions
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider selling by several executives, including VP Laurie Thomson, SVP Jonny M. Leroy, and VP Paige K. Robbins, could weigh on sentiment even though the sales were disclosed and may simply reflect personal portfolio activity. W.W. Grainger insider buying and selling alert

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on GWW shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Stephens boosted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,190.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,199.13.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 46.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 320 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $338,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 18.0% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,851 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,816,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 169.6% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,826 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,980,000 after purchasing an additional 2,407 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth $208,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 35.2% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 41,388 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,051,000 after purchasing an additional 10,784 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.