Federated Hermes Inc. Buys 4,910 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 60.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,030 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,910 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $13,554,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Quaker Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 316.7% in the 2nd quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 25 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Nova Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on GWW shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,006.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Barclays boosted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $963.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $975.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $1,009.43.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW opened at $994.17 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 2.72. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $954.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $997.61. The stock has a market cap of $47.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.11. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a one year low of $893.99 and a one year high of $1,169.73.

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

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 10th were paid a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 10th. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,163 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $972.57, for a total transaction of $11,829,368.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 103,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,035,434.45. This trade represents a 10.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 6.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About W.W. Grainger

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.