W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW Stock Position Reduced by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lessened its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 7.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 23,086 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,898 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $25,182,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Miller Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Reflection Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total transaction of $1,795,446.53. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 2,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,750,471.28. This represents a 39.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the firm’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 value of $385,518.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 399 shares in the company, valued at $491,444.31. The trade was a 43.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 2,624 shares of company stock worth $3,232,291. 6.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 2.2%

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,385.45 on Friday. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $906.52 and a 1-year high of $1,419.91. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,336.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,203.45. The company has a market capitalization of $65.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.03.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. The firm had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.58 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $9.86 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a $2.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $9.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 26.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Wolfe Research upgraded W.W. Grainger from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. DA Davidson started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,250.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,337.00 to $1,460.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings raised W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,190.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,230.11.

W.W. Grainger 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.