Analysts Issue Forecasts for W.W. Grainger FY2028 Earnings

Key Points

• Analysts at Zacks Research slightly cut their FY2028 EPS estimate for W.W. Grainger to $52.23 from $52.45, while the consensus estimate for the current full year stands at $40.30 per share.
• Several firms lifted price targets (Oppenheimer to $1,300; Morgan Stanley to $1,190; JPMorgan to $1,165) but views are mixed—MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of Hold with a $1,096.71 target (2 Buys, 5 Holds, 1 Sell).
• Grainger posted a slight quarterly EPS miss ($9.45 vs. $9.46) with revenue up 4.5% YoY, set FY2026 guidance of $42.25–$44.75 EPS, and pays a quarterly dividend of $2.26 (annualized $9.04, yield 0.8%).

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Zacks Research reduced their FY2028 earnings per share estimates for W.W. Grainger in a research report issued on Friday, April 10th. Zacks Research analyst Team now anticipates that the industrial products company will post earnings per share of $52.23 for the year, down from their previous estimate of $52.45. The consensus estimate for W.W. Grainger's current full-year earnings is $40.30 per share.

Several other research firms have also commented on GWW. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on 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. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on 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. lifted their price target on 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 W.W. Grainger from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $1,096.71.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 1.0%

GWW opened at $1,160.37 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $54.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.09. W.W. Grainger has a 12 month low of $906.52 and a 12 month high of $1,218.63. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $1,119.45 and a 200 day moving average of $1,035.15.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $4.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.39 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.46% and a net margin of 9.51%.The company's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $9.71 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 42.250-44.750 EPS.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 136.4% during the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 26 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the period. Accredited Investors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 211.1% during the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other W.W. Grainger news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 2,339 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,235 shares in the company, valued at $10,897,511.55. The trade was a 18.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 6.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

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

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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