Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Takes Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 67,068 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,913,000. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.14% of W.W. Grainger as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hilltop National Bank bought a new position in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter worth about $25,000. Quaker Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 196.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 24 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 316.7% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 25 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 136.4% in the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 26 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

GWW stock opened at $1,034.50 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $995.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $990.75. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $893.99 and a 1 year high of $1,139.15. The stock has a market cap of $49.19 billion, a PE ratio of 29.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $10.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.95 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $4.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 49.40% and a net margin of 9.75%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.87 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 39.000-39.750 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th were given a dividend of $2.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 25.35%.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 14,523 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $972.81, for a total value of $14,128,119.63. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 107,862 shares in the company, valued at $104,929,232.22. This trade represents a 11.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 195 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,249,953.82. This represents a 5.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 26,881 shares of company stock valued at $26,157,155 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price target 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. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,006.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,045.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $975.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six 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 a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $1,016.57.

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.