W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW Shares Sold by Pitcairn Co.

Pitcairn Co. reduced its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 62.8% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 814 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,376 shares during the period. Pitcairn Co.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $776,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parnassus Investments LLC purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $721,202,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the second quarter valued at approximately $536,916,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 46.6% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 443,386 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $422,529,000 after acquiring an additional 140,869 shares during the period. Finally, Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the third quarter worth approximately $63,913,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 2.9%

NYSE:GWW opened at $1,112.28 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $52.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.43, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,093.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,018.00. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $893.99 and a 12-month high of $1,218.63.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The industrial products company reported $9.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.46 by ($0.01). W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.46% and a net margin of 9.51%.The company had revenue of $4.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $9.71 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 42.250-44.750 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $2.26 dividend. This represents a $9.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $975.00 target price for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,071.38.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 195 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,023.93, for a total value of $199,666.35. Following the sale, the vice president owned 3,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,249,953.82. The trade was a 5.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

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.