William Blair Has Weak Outlook for W.W. Grainger Q3 Earnings

Key Points

• William Blair has lowered its Q3 2025 earnings per share estimate for W.W. Grainger from $10.24 to $10.05, reflecting a weak outlook for the company.
• W.W. Grainger's stock has seen updated price targets from several analysts, with Loop Capital reducing their target to $950.00 while the average price target now stands at $1,069.13.
• The company reported Q2 earnings of $9.97 per share, missing consensus estimates of $10.07, despite a year-over-year revenue increase of 5.6%.

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Free Report) - Research analysts at William Blair dropped their Q3 2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note issued to investors on Monday, September 22nd. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now forecasts that the industrial products company will post earnings of $10.05 per share for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $10.24. The consensus estimate for W.W. Grainger's current full-year earnings is $40.30 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for W.W. Grainger's FY2025 earnings at $39.53 EPS.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Loop Capital lowered their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $950.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered 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 research report on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $1,069.13.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE GWW opened at $974.99 on Wednesday. W.W. Grainger has a 1-year low of $893.99 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The company has a current ratio of 2.82, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $1,001.16 and a 200-day moving average of $1,018.52. The firm has a market cap of $46.63 billion, a PE ratio of 24.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 1.18.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last released its 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 company had revenue of $4.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.52 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.76 EPS. The company'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.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hilltop National Bank purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Quaker Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 196.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 24 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 316.7% in the 2nd quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 25 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were paid a $2.26 dividend. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. W.W. Grainger's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.94%.

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.

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