W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) VP Paige Robbins Sells 1,457 Shares of Stock

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) VP Paige Robbins sold 1,457 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total value of $1,795,446.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 2,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,750,471.28. This trade represents a 39.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,282.80 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $1,133.04 and a 200 day moving average of $1,068.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.04. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1 year low of $906.52 and a 1 year high of $1,286.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 47.87% and a net margin of 9.70%.The company’s revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.4 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a $2.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.79%.

Key Stories Impacting W.W. Grainger

Here are the key news stories impacting W.W. Grainger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: KeyCorp raised several earnings estimates for W.W. Grainger, including Q2 2026, Q3 2026, Q4 2026, Q2 2027, Q3 2027, and FY2027, reflecting improved expectations for future profitability.
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s recent quarterly results beat Wall Street forecasts, and management increased full-year sales guidance, reinforcing the view that business demand remains solid.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also digesting post-earnings commentary, with analysts focusing on the company’s margin trends, demand outlook, and guidance sustainability. WW Grainger’s Q1 earnings call: Our top 5 analyst questions
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider sales by several executives, including VP Paige K. Robbins, SVP Jonny M. Leroy, and VP Laurie R. Thomson, may create some caution for investors even though the transactions were disclosed and could reflect routine portfolio activity.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Accredited Investors Inc. acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Miller Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 211.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 314.3% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 29 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on GWW. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on 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. Stephens lifted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,052.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,199.13.

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.