North Dakota State Investment Board bought a new position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW – Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,520 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,534,000.
Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 1.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,731,880 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,462,252,000 after purchasing an additional 104,607 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 0.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,996,053 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,902,159,000 after purchasing an additional 13,779 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 0.5% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 659,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $628,151,000 after purchasing an additional 3,114 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 477,693 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $482,016,000 after purchasing an additional 34,307 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 34,269.9% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 435,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $439,407,000 after purchasing an additional 434,199 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
GWW has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective 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. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,047.00 to $1,171.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective 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. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,199.13.
W.W. Grainger Stock Performance
Shares of GWW opened at $1,244.53 on Wednesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $906.52 and a 12 month high of $1,286.56. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,140.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,074.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.47, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.04. 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 (NYSE:GWW – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.21 by $1.44. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. The business had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $9.86 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. Research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.
W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be issued a dividend of $2.49 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.79%.
Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger
In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,231.69, for a total transaction of $385,518.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $491,444.31. This represents a 43.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 2,339 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,064.73, for a total transaction of $2,490,403.47. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,897,511.55. The trade was a 18.60% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 6,451 shares of company stock worth $7,380,743. Company insiders own 6.30% 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.
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