W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW Shares Sold by B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG

Key Points

• B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG cut its stake by 45% in W.W. Grainger during Q4, leaving it with 3,349 shares worth $3.38 million, while institutional investors own about 80.7% of the stock.
• Grainger reported Q EPS of $9.45 (missed by $0.01) and revenue of $4.43 billion, up 4.5% year-over-year, and set FY2026 guidance of $42.25–$44.75 EPS versus analysts' forecast of $43.61.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $2.26 ($9.04 annualized, 0.8% yield) and has a consensus analyst rating of "Hold" with a target price of $1,118.14.

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG cut its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 45.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,349 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,737 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,379,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 15.1% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 7,523 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $7,169,000 after purchasing an additional 987 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the third quarter worth $4,205,000. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 20.4% during the third quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 5,947 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,667,000 after purchasing an additional 1,008 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 212.3% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 54,215 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $55,795,000 after purchasing an additional 36,855 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 3.7% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 60,164 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $57,334,000 after purchasing an additional 2,120 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE:GWW opened at $1,149.80 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $906.52 and a twelve month high of $1,218.63. The company has a 50-day moving average of $1,116.32 and a 200-day moving average of $1,046.67. The firm has a market cap of $54.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The industrial products company reported $9.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.46 by ($0.01). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.46% and a net margin of 9.51%.The firm had revenue of $4.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.39 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $9.71 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 42.250-44.750 EPS. Analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 43.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a $2.26 dividend. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GWW has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective 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. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,044.00 to $1,047.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $1,118.14.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 2,339 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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