QRG Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

QRG Capital Management Inc. reduced its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 40.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,375 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,642 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,263,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 4.4% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,627,273 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,853,714,000 after acquiring an additional 238,895 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,982,274 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,062,041,000 after purchasing an additional 8,735 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.9% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the third quarter valued at about $721,202,000. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at about $536,916,000. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,068.63 on Tuesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $893.99 and a twelve month high of $1,139.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $50.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.97, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.12. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $993.37 and its 200 day moving average is $990.87.

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 (EPS) 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $9.87 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 39.000-39.750 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors 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 yield of 0.8%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is presently 25.35%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,163 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $972.57, for a total value of $11,829,368.91. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 103,885 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,035,434.45. This represents a 10.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 195 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,023.93, for a total transaction of $199,666.35. Following the sale, the vice president owned 3,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,249,953.82. The trade was a 5.79% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 26,881 shares of company stock worth $26,157,155 over the last three months. 6.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on GWW. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $963.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,045.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, December 29th. 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 objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $1,016.57.

About W.W. Grainger

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.