KBC Group NV Raises Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 113.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,877 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,242 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $10,774,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. State Street Corp boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,019,452 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,037,728,000 after buying an additional 23,399 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,217,834 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,230,214,000 after acquiring an additional 10,533 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,462.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,071,854 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,081,554,000 after acquiring an additional 1,003,237 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 61.1% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,027,286 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,036,584,000 after acquiring an additional 389,589 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 0.5% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 659,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $628,151,000 after purchasing an additional 3,114 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was 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. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $491,444.31. The trade was a 43.96% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 2,624 shares of company stock worth $3,232,291 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,354.93 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,319.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,187.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.44, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.03. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $906.52 and a 52-week high of $1,419.91.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.86 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on GWW. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,337.00 to $1,460.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. DA Davidson began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,250.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein raised 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. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,230.11.

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.