W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Given Buy (B) Rating at Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• W.W. Grainger's stock received a "buy" rating from Weiss Ratings, while other analysts have varied opinions, including an "underweight" rating from Barclays.
• The company's stock increased by 0.8% to $966.42, with a trading volume of 194,040 shares and a market capitalization of $46.22 billion.
• W.W. Grainger reported $4.55 billion in quarterly revenue, exceeding consensus estimates and showing a year-over-year revenue increase of 5.6%.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy (b)" rating reiterated by research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a report released on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on GWW. Barclays began coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $963.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,035.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,215.00 to $1,160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $950.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1,073.88.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.8%

GWW stock traded up $7.60 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $966.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 194,040 shares, compared to its average volume of 297,950. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 2.82 and a quick ratio of 1.64. W.W. Grainger has a twelve month low of $893.99 and a twelve month high of $1,227.66. The company's fifty day moving average price is $984.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,016.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.33, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.17.

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 EPS 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 firm 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 business earned $9.76 EPS. The business'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. As a group, equities research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 500 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.86, for a total value of $496,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 1,771 shares in the company, valued at $1,758,355.06. The trade was a 22.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 6.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of W.W. Grainger

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GWW. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,627,273 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,853,714,000 after buying an additional 238,895 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,982,274 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,062,041,000 after acquiring an additional 8,735 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,260,610 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,306,289,000 after acquiring an additional 23,418 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 10.1% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 822,411 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $812,403,000 after acquiring an additional 75,644 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $536,916,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company's stock.

About W.W. Grainger

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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