Allstate Corp Raises Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Key Points

• Allstate Corp more than doubled its stake in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter, buying an additional 1,681 shares and bringing its total holding to 3,320 shares worth about $3.35 million.
• Institutional interest remains strong: hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of Grainger shares, while several firms recently increased or initiated positions in the stock.
• Grainger reported strong quarterly results with EPS of $11.65 and revenue of $4.74 billion, beat analyst estimates, and raised its quarterly dividend from $2.26 to $2.49 per share.

Allstate Corp lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 102.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,320 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,681 shares during the quarter. Allstate Corp's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,350,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 34,269.9% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 435,466 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $439,407,000 after acquiring an additional 434,199 shares during the period. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $239,597,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,731,880 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,462,252,000 after buying an additional 104,607 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 899.0% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 94,737 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $95,594,000 after buying an additional 85,254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 96.7% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 149,920 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $141,896,000 after buying an additional 73,714 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 2,339 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at $10,897,511.55. This trade represents a 18.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the vice president directly owned 399 shares of the company's stock, valued at $491,444.31. This represents a 43.96% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 6,451 shares of company stock worth $7,380,743. 6.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on GWW shares. Stephens increased 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 note on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded W.W. Grainger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded W.W. Grainger from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1,212.88.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $1,246.52 on Thursday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $906.52 and a 1-year high of $1,286.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The business's fifty day moving average price is $1,159.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $1,086.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.85 billion, a PE ratio of 33.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.04.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.21 by $1.44. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.87% and a net margin of 9.70%.The firm had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.58 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $9.86 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter 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. On average, research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.22 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a $2.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 dividend yield of 0.8%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.79%.

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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