Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. Acquires 2,908 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 15.0% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 22,330 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,908 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $21,280,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Quaker Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 196.0% during the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 24 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 136.4% during the 2nd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 26 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Finally, Tobam grew its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 3,900.0% during the 2nd quarter. Tobam now owns 40 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,105.17 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,080.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,010.57. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52 week low of $893.99 and a 52 week high of $1,218.63. The stock has a market cap of $52.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.23, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The industrial products company reported $9.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.46 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $4.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.39 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.46% and a net margin of 9.51%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.71 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 42.250-44.750 EPS. Analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th will be issued a dividend of $2.26 per share. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 9th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 25.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on GWW shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,006.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,060.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 14,523 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $972.81, for a total value of $14,128,119.63. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 107,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $104,929,232.22. The trade was a 11.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 195 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,023.93, for a total transaction of $199,666.35. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 3,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,249,953.82. The trade was a 5.79% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 26,881 shares of company stock valued at $26,157,155 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger 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.