W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW Stake Lifted by Guardian Capital LP

Guardian Capital LP lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 4.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,897 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 574 shares during the quarter. Guardian Capital LP’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $12,290,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Nomura Holdings Inc. lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 0.3% in the second quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 3,283 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,415,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 1,580 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,644,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 277 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 212 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $202,000 after buying an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 3,958 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,772,000 after buying an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 195 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,023.93, for a total transaction of $199,666.35. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 3,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,249,953.82. This represents 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 through this hyperlink. Insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

GWW opened at $1,112.28 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market cap of $52.69 billion, a PE ratio of 31.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,093.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,017.83. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $893.99 and a fifty-two week high of $1,218.63.

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

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $2.26 per share. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is presently 25.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays upped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $963.00 to $975.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $975.00 price objective on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,071.38.

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.