Handelsbanken Fonder AB Acquires 937 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,149 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 937 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $15,286,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,731,880 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,462,252,000 after buying an additional 104,607 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,996,053 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,902,159,000 after buying an additional 13,779 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.5% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 659,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $628,151,000 after buying an additional 3,114 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 477,693 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $482,016,000 after buying an additional 34,307 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 34,269.9% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 435,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $439,407,000 after buying an additional 434,199 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE GWW opened at $1,243.76 on Thursday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $906.52 and a 52-week high of $1,286.56. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,143.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,076.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 2.69. The company has a market capitalization of $58.72 billion, a PE ratio of 33.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 1.04.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. The business had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $9.86 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.43 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on GWW shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,190.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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, Barclays increased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,047.00 to $1,171.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,199.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total transaction of $1,795,446.53. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 2,232 shares in the company, valued at $2,750,471.28. This trade represents a 39.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 2,339 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,064.73, for a total transaction of $2,490,403.47. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,897,511.55. This represents a 18.60% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 6,451 shares of company stock worth $7,380,743 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.30% 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.