W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW Shares Sold by California Public Employees Retirement System

Key Points

• California Public Employees Retirement System cut its W.W. Grainger stake by 4.0% in the first quarter, selling 5,058 shares. It still held 122,476 shares worth about $133.6 million.
• W.W. Grainger reported strong quarterly earnings, with EPS of $11.65 beating estimates and revenue of $4.74 billion topping expectations. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $2.49 per share.
• Wall Street sentiment remains cautious: analysts have a consensus Hold rating on GWW with an average price target of $1,230.11. Several firms adjusted targets and ratings recently, including downgrades from Barclays and Stephens.

California Public Employees Retirement System trimmed its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) by 4.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 122,476 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 5,058 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned about 0.26% of W.W. Grainger worth $133,598,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Miller Capital Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 314.3% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 29 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,052.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Barclays dropped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,171.00 to $1,166.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stephens downgraded W.W. Grainger from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $1,355.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wolfe Research raised shares of W.W. Grainger from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,190.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $1,230.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 854 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.06, for a total value of $1,051,325.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 1,554 shares in the company, valued at $1,913,067.24. This represents a 35.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total value of $1,795,446.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 2,232 shares in the company, valued at $2,750,471.28. This represents a 39.50% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 2,624 shares of company stock valued at $3,232,291 in the last 90 days. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,392.73 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average is $1,312.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,178.69. The company has a market cap of $65.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.03. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $906.52 and a 12-month high of $1,419.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

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 the consensus estimate of $10.21 by $1.44. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.87% and a net margin of 9.70%.The business had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $9.86 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger's revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. Equities analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $2.49 per share. This represents a $9.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was 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 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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