Handelsbanken Fonder AB Has $15.29 Million Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Key Points

• Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 6.6% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 15,149 shares valued at about $15.29 million.
• Wall Street analysts remain mixed on GWW, with an average Hold rating and a consensus price target of $1,199.13 despite several firms raising their targets.
• Grainger reported strong quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, and also raised its quarterly dividend to $2.49 per share from $2.26.

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 6.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,149 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 937 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $15,286,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 483 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $487,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 1,789 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,805,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Sawyer & Company Inc increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Sawyer & Company Inc now owns 676 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $682,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 212 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 3,958 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,772,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,052.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,190.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,047.00 to $1,171.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $1,199.13.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 2,339 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,064.73, for a total transaction of $2,490,403.47. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 10,235 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,897,511.55. This represents a 18.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 854 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.06, for a total transaction of $1,051,325.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,554 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,913,067.24. This represents a 35.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 6,451 shares of company stock valued at $7,380,743 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.30% of the company's stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW opened at $1,243.76 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.04. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $1,143.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,076.37. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $906.52 and a 12 month high of $1,286.56.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. The company had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.58 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. W.W. Grainger's quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.43 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a dividend of $2.49 per share. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th. W.W. Grainger's payout ratio 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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