Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Invests $19.60 Million in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Key Points

• Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new $19.6 million stake in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter, while institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 80.7% of the company.
• Grainger’s latest quarter beat expectations, with EPS of $12.01 versus $11.30 expected and revenue of $5.02 billion, up 10.3% year over year. Zacks subsequently upgraded the stock to a Buy and raised several future EPS estimates.
• Despite strong operating results, analyst sentiment remains cautious: the consensus rating is Hold, with a $1,286.62 price target, while Grainger trades at about 33 times earnings and offers a 0.8% dividend yield.

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 14,408 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $19,601,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Banco BTG Pactual S.A. acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,048,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 2nd quarter worth about $324,824,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,353.1% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 31,242 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $42,502,000 after buying an additional 29,092 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter worth $11,591,000. Finally, Strs Ohio raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 253.8% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 3,747 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,781,000 after purchasing an additional 2,688 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about W.W. Grainger

Here are the key news stories impacting W.W. Grainger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded GWW to a No. 2 (Buy) rank, citing growing optimism about the company’s earnings prospects. Zacks rating upgrade article
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised multiple future EPS estimates, including FY2027 to $50.40 from $50.21 and FY2028 to $54.37 from $54.17. Estimates were also increased for Q1 2027, Q2 2027, Q4 2027 and Q2 2028, suggesting modestly improving expectations for profitability. MarketBeat analyst estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Grainger’s latest reported quarter exceeded expectations, with EPS of $12.01 versus the $11.30 consensus and revenue of $5.02 billion versus $4.96 billion. Revenue increased 10.3% year over year, supporting the case for continued earnings growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street commentary is mixed: GWW has outperformed the broader market over the past year, but analysts remain cautious about its future upside. Barchart analyst outlook article
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation may be limiting enthusiasm. Grainger trades at roughly 33 times earnings, while its shares are below the 50-day moving average after approaching a 12-month high. Investors may be taking profits or demanding stronger estimate increases before bidding the stock higher. MSN analyst outlook article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on GWW shares. Barclays raised their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,166.00 to $1,185.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wolfe Research raised W.W. Grainger from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,400.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1,286.62.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE:GWW opened at $1,305.72 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $906.52 and a fifty-two week high of $1,419.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.81. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $1,342.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,234.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.29, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.04.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $12.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $11.30 by $0.71. The company had revenue of $5.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.96 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 48.73% and a net margin of 9.92%.The firm's revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $9.97 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 45.500-47.250 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 46.17 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be paid a $2.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.40%.

W.W. Grainger Company Profile

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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