W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $1,390.96 and last traded at $1,376.4270, with a volume of 35511 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $1,342.57.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on GWW. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,190.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,250.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,171.00 to $1,166.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted 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. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,216.44.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $64.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.04. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,244.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,137.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. The firm had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.58 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.39 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $2.49 dividend. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.69, for a total transaction of $385,518.97. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $491,444.31. This represents a 43.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total value of $1,795,446.53. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 2,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,750,471.28. This trade represents a 39.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,112 shares of company stock worth $4,890,339. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Miller Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 211.1% during 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 shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 314.3% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 29 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Company Profile

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.