Advisors Asset Management Inc. Purchases 955 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Key Points

• Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 15% in Q1, purchasing an additional 955 shares, bringing its total holdings to 7,334 shares valued at approximately $7.25 million.
• W.W. Grainger's recent earnings miss estimated expectations, reporting $9.97 earnings per share, slightly lower than the consensus of $10.07, with revenues up 5.6% year-over-year at $4.55 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $2.26 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.9%, and a payout ratio of 22.94% as of its latest announcement.

Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 15.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 7,334 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 955 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $7,245,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 46.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 320 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $338,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 68.9% in the fourth quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 461 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $485,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $1,018,000. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 5,191 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,471,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgefront Capital LLC bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth $366,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on GWW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,035.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $950.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,215.00 to $1,160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,176.00 to $1,007.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1,069.13.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW stock traded down $34.44 on Friday, hitting $993.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 416,031 shares, compared to its average volume of 275,453. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.82. The stock's 50 day moving average is $1,012.87 and its 200-day moving average is $1,019.12. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $893.99 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66. The company has a market capitalization of $47.52 billion, a PE ratio of 25.21, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $10.07 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.52 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 49.63% and a net margin of 10.99%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $9.76 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 38.500-40.250 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a dividend of $2.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.94%.

W.W. Grainger Company Profile

W.W. Grainger, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes maintenance, repair, and operating products and services primarily in North America, Japan, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, High-Touch Solutions N.A. and Endless Assortment. The company provides safety, security, material handling and storage equipment, pumps and plumbing equipment, cleaning and maintenance, and metalworking and hand tools.