Renaissance Technologies LLC Cuts Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Renaissance Technologies LLC decreased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 74.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 55,040 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $20,987,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Mattern Capital Management LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Mattern Capital Management LLC now owns 12,234 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $12,345,000 after purchasing an additional 563 shares in the last quarter. Banco BTG Pactual S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,048,000. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 72.3% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 2,353 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,374,000 after buying an additional 987 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 526.9% during the fourth quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 1,655 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,670,000 after acquiring an additional 1,391 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invariant Investment Management purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $900,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 854 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.06, for a total value of $1,051,325.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,913,067.24. This trade represents a 35.47% 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 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 value of $385,518.97. Following the sale, the vice president owned 399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $491,444.31. This represents a 43.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,624 shares of company stock valued at $3,232,291. Insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,360.12 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $906.52 and a 12-month high of $1,419.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.03. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $1,331.41 and its 200 day moving average is $1,199.88.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its 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 business had revenue of $4.74 billion during 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%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. Research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.46 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be issued a $2.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $9.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada upped 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 report on Thursday, July 16th. Stephens cut W.W. Grainger from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $1,355.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Weiss Ratings raised W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Wolfe Research raised W.W. Grainger from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, 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 objective on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,230.11.

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.