Legal & General Group Plc trimmed its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 324,509 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 13,490 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.68% of W.W. Grainger worth $327,446,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 1.9% in 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 lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 0.6% in 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 raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Sawyer & Company Inc now owns 676 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $682,000 after buying an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,097 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,107,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of 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 valued at $202,000 after buying an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several analysts have recently weighed in on GWW shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,190.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1,199.13.
Read Our Latest Report on GWW
Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger
In related news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 2,339 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,064.73, for a total value of $2,490,403.47. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,235 shares in the company, valued at $10,897,511.55. This trade represents a 18.60% 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, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 854 shares of W.W. Grainger 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 1,554 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,913,067.24. The trade was a 35.47% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 6,451 shares of company stock worth $7,380,743 in the last 90 days. 6.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
W.W. Grainger Stock Performance
W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,250.94 on Wednesday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $1,155.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,084.30. 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 $59.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 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 $1,286.56.
W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. The company had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.58 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. The firm's revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a $2.49 dividend. This represents a $9.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio is 26.79%.
W.W. Grainger Profile
(
Free Report)
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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