W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• W.W. Grainger has a consensus analyst rating of “Hold”, with 1 sell, 6 hold, and 3 buy ratings among 10 covering analysts. The average 1-year price target is $1,217.
• The company beat quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $11.65 versus $10.21 expected and revenue of $4.74 billion versus $4.58 billion expected. Revenue rose 10.1% year over year, and Grainger also raised its quarterly dividend from $2.26 to $2.49 per share.
• Shares recently traded near their 52-week high, opening at $1,364.88 versus a high of $1,365.42. The stock has also seen insider selling, while institutional investors continue to hold a large majority of shares.

Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the ten analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $1,217.00.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GWW. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,052.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,190.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,047.00 to $1,171.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,364.88 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $64.44 billion, a PE ratio of 36.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.04. W.W. Grainger has a twelve month low of $906.52 and a twelve month high of $1,365.42. The company's 50 day moving average is $1,234.04 and its 200 day moving average is $1,128.54. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. The business had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.58 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. The business's revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger will post 45.39 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $2.49 per share. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger's previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $9.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. W.W. Grainger's payout ratio is 26.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total transaction of $1,795,446.53. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 2,232 shares in the company, valued at $2,750,471.28. This trade represents a 39.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,235 shares in the company, valued at $10,897,511.55. This trade represents a 18.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,451 shares of company stock worth $7,380,743. Corporate insiders own 6.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Miller Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 211.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 314.3% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 29 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.