Ethic Inc. Has $6 Million Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. reduced its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. by 12.2%, now owning 5,833 shares valued at approximately $6 million.
• Multiple institutional investors have adjusted their positions in W.W. Grainger, including JPMorgan Chase which increased its stake by 10.1%, now holding shares worth over $812 million.
• The company's most recent earnings report showed EPS of $9.97, below the consensus estimate, but with year-over-year revenue growth of 5.6% reported.

Ethic Inc. trimmed its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 12.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,833 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 811 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $6,001,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter valued at about $285,574,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 10.1% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 822,411 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $812,403,000 after buying an additional 75,644 shares during the period. Kodai Capital Management LP acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter worth approximately $67,601,000. Interval Partners LP raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 1,429.9% during the 1st quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 67,957 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $67,130,000 after buying an additional 63,515 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in W.W. Grainger by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,388,378 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,322,801,000 after buying an additional 57,690 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.86, for a total value of $496,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,771 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,758,355.06. This represents a 22.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on GWW. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,176.00 to $1,007.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. They set an "underweight" rating and a $963.00 price target on the stock. Loop Capital dropped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $950.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,035.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $1,053.71.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.4%

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $967.80 on Thursday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $893.99 and a fifty-two week high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market cap of $46.29 billion, a PE ratio of 24.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.17. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $982.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,014.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.82.

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

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.94%.

W.W. Grainger 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.

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