ABN Amro Investment Solutions Reduces Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

ABN Amro Investment Solutions trimmed its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 10.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 49,656 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,509 shares during the period. ABN Amro Investment Solutions’ holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $50,105,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 483 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $487,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 1,789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,805,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Sawyer & Company Inc increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Sawyer & Company Inc now owns 676 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $682,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 212 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 3,958 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,772,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of GWW opened at $1,243.76 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $58.72 billion, a PE ratio of 33.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.04. The company’s fifty day moving average is $1,143.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,076.37. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $906.52 and a fifty-two week high of $1,286.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. The company had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.58 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. Analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.43 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be issued a dividend of $2.49 per share. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on GWW. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price 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 report on Tuesday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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 research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,190.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,199.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,231.69, for a total transaction of $385,518.97. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $491,444.31. The trade was a 43.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total transaction of $1,795,446.53. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 2,232 shares in the company, valued at $2,750,471.28. The trade was a 39.50% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,451 shares of company stock worth $7,380,743. Insiders own 6.30% 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.