7,803 Shares in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW Acquired by Employees Provident Fund Board

Key Points

• Employees Provident Fund Board bought 7,803 shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter, a position valued at about $7.9 million.
• Several other institutional investors also adjusted their stakes, and institutions and hedge funds now own 80.7% of the company.
• W.W. Grainger reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $11.65 topping estimates and revenue rising 10.1% year over year, while it also raised its quarterly dividend to $2.49 per share.

Employees Provident Fund Board purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 7,803 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $7,874,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 46.8% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 320 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $338,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 18.0% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,851 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,816,000 after buying an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 169.6% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,826 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,980,000 after buying an additional 2,407 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at about $208,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 35.2% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 41,388 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $43,051,000 after buying an additional 10,784 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total value of $1,795,446.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 2,232 shares in the company, valued at $2,750,471.28. This represents a 39.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,231.69, for a total value of $385,518.97. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 399 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $491,444.31. This represents a 43.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 6,451 shares of company stock valued at $7,380,743. 6.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.0%

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,364.88 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 2.69. The stock has a market cap of $64.44 billion, a PE ratio of 36.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.04. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $906.52 and a fifty-two week high of $1,365.42. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $1,234.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,128.54.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last posted 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 firm had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $9.86 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. Research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $2.49 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. This represents a $9.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,190.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings raised W.W. Grainger from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. DA Davidson started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Tuesday. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $1,250.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stephens lifted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1,217.00.

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.

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