W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $1,216.4444.

Several equities research analysts have commented on GWW shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,190.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. DA Davidson started coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,250.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target 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 note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective 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 note on Friday, May 8th.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of W.W. Grainger 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 in the company, valued at $2,750,471.28. The trade was a 39.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.69, for a total value of $385,518.97. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $491,444.31. This trade represents a 43.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 4,112 shares of company stock valued at $4,890,339 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Mattern Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Mattern Capital Management LLC now owns 12,234 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $12,345,000 after purchasing an additional 563 shares in the last quarter. Banco BTG Pactual S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth about $1,048,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 212.3% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 54,215 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $55,795,000 after purchasing an additional 36,855 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 160.6% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 68,139 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $68,756,000 after purchasing an additional 41,990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 72.3% during the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 2,353 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,374,000 after purchasing an additional 987 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,353.16 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $63.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.04. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,252.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,141.94. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. W.W. Grainger has a 12-month low of $906.52 and a 12-month high of $1,390.96.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm’s revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger will post 45.39 EPS for the current 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. 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%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.