Merit Financial Group LLC Boosts Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 72.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,353 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 987 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,374,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 1,789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,805,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised 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 worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 212 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 3,958 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,772,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AGH Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. AGH Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 344 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $328,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,163.42 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The company has a 50-day moving average of $1,116.21 and a 200 day moving average of $1,042.21. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $906.52 and a 12-month high of $1,218.63. The stock has a market cap of $55.06 billion, a PE ratio of 32.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.09.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The industrial products company reported $9.45 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $4.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.39 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $9.71 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 42.250-44.750 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 43.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $2.26 dividend. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 2,339 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,064.73, for a total value of $2,490,403.47. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 10,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,897,511.55. This trade represents a 18.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 6.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped 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, March 3rd. 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 research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,044.00 to $1,047.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,096.71.

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.