W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the eleven brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $1,216.4444.

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. DA Davidson started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,250.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,052.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Stephens cut shares of W.W. Grainger from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $1,355.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,171.00 to $1,166.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 854 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,231.06, for a total value of $1,051,325.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 1,554 shares in the company, valued at $1,913,067.24. This trade represents a 35.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total value of $1,795,446.53. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,232 shares in the company, valued at $2,750,471.28. This represents a 39.50% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 2,624 shares of company stock worth $3,232,291 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,462.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,071,854 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,081,554,000 after purchasing an additional 1,003,237 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at about $518,958,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 34,269.9% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 435,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $439,407,000 after purchasing an additional 434,199 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 61.1% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,027,286 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,036,584,000 after buying an additional 389,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sustainable Growth Advisers LP purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the third quarter worth about $239,597,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE GWW opened at $1,369.66 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $64.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.03. W.W. Grainger has a 52-week low of $906.52 and a 52-week high of $1,405.72. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $1,305.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,174.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.21 by $1.44. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.87% and a net margin of 9.70%.The firm had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $9.86 EPS. The firm’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. On average, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger will post 45.45 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a dividend of $2.49 per share. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.79%.

W.W. Grainger Company Profile

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.