W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Given New $1,190.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) had its price objective boosted by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $1,100.00 to $1,190.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the industrial products company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target points to a potential upside of 4.30% from the stock’s previous close.

GWW has been the subject of a number of other reports. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $963.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $975.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,006.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,071.38.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock traded down $11.34 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $1,140.91. 75,836 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 291,814. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $1,084.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,013.80. The company has a market cap of $54.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.24, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 2.83. W.W. Grainger has a 1-year low of $893.99 and a 1-year high of $1,218.63.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The industrial products company reported $9.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.46 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $4.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.39 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.46% and a net margin of 9.51%.The firm’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $9.71 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 42.250-44.750 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 195 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,023.93, for a total value of $199,666.35. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 3,174 shares in the company, valued at $3,249,953.82. The trade was a 5.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 14,523 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $972.81, for a total value of $14,128,119.63. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 107,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $104,929,232.22. The trade was a 11.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 26,881 shares of company stock worth $26,157,155 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Accredited Investors Inc. bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 136.4% in the 2nd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 26 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 211.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

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.