Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Lowers Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Key Points

• Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. has significantly reduced its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. by 42.8%, holding 26,686 shares valued at approximately $27.76 million after selling nearly 20,000 shares in the second quarter.
• Major institutional investors, including Vanguard Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co., increased their ownership in W.W. Grainger, indicating ongoing interest from large funds, with institutional investors owning around 80.70% of the stock.
• The most recent earnings report for W.W. Grainger showed a quarterly revenue of $4.55 billion, slightly exceeding expectations, but earnings per share fell short of analyst estimates, highlighting a mixed financial performance.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. cut its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 42.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,686 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 19,928 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. owned 0.06% of W.W. Grainger worth $27,760,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,388,378 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,322,801,000 after purchasing an additional 57,690 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 10.1% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 822,411 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $812,403,000 after purchasing an additional 75,644 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 416,086 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $410,975,000 after purchasing an additional 6,797 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.5% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 306,829 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $303,095,000 after purchasing an additional 13,330 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the first quarter worth $285,574,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 owned 1,771 shares in the company, valued at $1,758,355.06. This trade represents a 22.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on GWW. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,176.00 to $1,007.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,035.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Loop Capital cut their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $950.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,215.00 to $1,160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $1,069.13.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of GWW stock opened at $957.17 on Friday. 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 $45.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $987.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,016.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

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

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were given a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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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