Ascentis Independent Advisors Raises Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Ascentis Independent Advisors lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 88.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,247 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 587 shares during the quarter. Ascentis Independent Advisors’ holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,361,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. State Street Corp lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,019,452 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,037,728,000 after purchasing an additional 23,399 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,217,834 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,230,214,000 after buying an additional 10,533 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised 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 buying an additional 1,003,237 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 61.1% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,027,286 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,036,584,000 after buying an additional 389,589 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 659,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $628,151,000 after buying an additional 3,114 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total transaction of $1,795,446.53. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,750,471.28. This trade represents a 39.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,231.69, for a total transaction of $385,518.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $491,444.31. This represents a 43.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 2,624 shares of company stock valued at $3,232,291 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,370.38 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $1,275.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,157.67. The company has a market capitalization of $64.70 billion, a PE ratio of 36.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.03. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $906.52 and a 12-month high of $1,390.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.21 by $1.44. The firm had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.58 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.87% and a net margin of 9.70%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GWW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,190.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,250.00 price target for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,216.44.

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.