W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) to Issue Dividend Increase – $2.05 Per Share

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, April 24th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a dividend of 2.05 per share by the industrial products company on Saturday, June 1st. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 10th. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86.

W.W. Grainger has raised its dividend by an average of 7.1% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 53 consecutive years. W.W. Grainger has a dividend payout ratio of 17.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect W.W. Grainger to earn $43.23 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $7.44 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 17.2%.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $958.32 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $980.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $872.05. W.W. Grainger has a 52-week low of $641.95 and a 52-week high of $1,034.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.08 billion, a PE ratio of 26.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.14.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The industrial products company reported $8.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.05 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.04 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 56.54% and a net margin of 11.10%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $7.14 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger will post 39.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on GWW shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 16th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $809.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 5th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Loop Capital downgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $925.00 to $1,000.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $740.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $913.89.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total transaction of $3,694,339.44. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,756,231.92. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total transaction of $2,966,586.84. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,664,629.98. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total value of $3,694,339.44. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.