Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Has $17.62 Million Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio cut its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 0.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,935 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 91 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $17,616,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Nova Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 52.6% during the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 29 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 50.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 30 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the first quarter valued at $46,000. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on GWW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,125.00 to $1,035.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced 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 report on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,215.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Loop Capital reduced 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,069.13.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

NYSE:GWW opened at $952.57 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $998.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,017.65. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $893.99 and a 52 week high of $1,227.66. The stock has a market cap of $45.56 billion, a PE ratio of 24.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.07 by ($0.10). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 49.63% and a net margin of 10.99%.The business had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $9.76 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 38.500-40.250 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were given a dividend of $2.26 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.86, for a total transaction of $496,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,771 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,758,355.06. This trade represents a 22.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger 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.