W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW Shares Acquired by Groupe la Francaise

Groupe la Francaise increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 20.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,213 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 544 shares during the quarter. Groupe la Francaise’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,328,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GWW. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 4.4% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,627,273 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,853,714,000 after purchasing an additional 238,895 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 1.9% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,260,610 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,306,289,000 after purchasing an additional 23,418 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 10.1% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 822,411 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $812,403,000 after buying an additional 75,644 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter worth about $536,916,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 416,086 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $410,975,000 after buying an additional 6,797 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other W.W. Grainger news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.86, for a total value of $496,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 1,771 shares in the company, valued at $1,758,355.06. This represents a 22.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE:GWW opened at $969.95 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $952.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,001.56. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $893.99 and a twelve month high of $1,196.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.20, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.11.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $10.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.95 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $4.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 49.40% and a net margin of 9.75%.The firm’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $9.87 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 39.000-39.750 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 10th were given a dividend of $2.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is 25.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective 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 report on Tuesday, November 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,035.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective 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. Barclays increased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $963.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $975.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $1,009.43.

W.W. Grainger Profile

W.W. Grainger, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes maintenance, repair, and operating products and services primarily in North America, Japan, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, High-Touch Solutions N.A. and Endless Assortment. The company provides safety, security, material handling and storage equipment, pumps and plumbing equipment, cleaning and maintenance, and metalworking and hand tools.