Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Raises Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Key Points

• Gateway Investment Advisers LLC significantly increased its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. by 115.9% during the second quarter, owning shares worth approximately $2.93 million as of the quarter's end.
• W.W. Grainger recently reported quarterly earnings of $9.97 per share, missing analysts' expectations, although it did achieve a revenue increase of 5.6% compared to the previous year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $2.26 per share, representing an annualized yield of 0.9% and a payout ratio of 22.94%.

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 115.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,813 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 1,510 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,926,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 100,843.0% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 692,469 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $684,042,000 after purchasing an additional 691,783 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $285,574,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in 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 buying an additional 75,644 shares in the last quarter. Kodai Capital Management LP acquired a new position in W.W. Grainger in the first quarter valued at $67,601,000. Finally, Interval Partners LP lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,429.9% during the first quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 67,957 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $67,130,000 after purchasing an additional 63,515 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company's stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

GWW traded down $16.90 on Friday, hitting $988.33. 488,410 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 293,053. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.27 billion, a PE ratio of 25.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.18. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $893.99 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $1,004.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,018.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.82, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $4.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $9.76 EPS. W.W. Grainger's revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 38.500-40.250 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a dividend of $2.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 payout ratio is presently 22.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.86, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 22.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 6.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,176.00 to $1,007.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,215.00 to $1,160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,035.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $950.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1,069.13.

W.W. Grainger Company 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.