Texas Permanent School Fund Corp Trims Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Texas Permanent School Fund Corp reduced its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 44.5% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 3,072 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,465 shares during the quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $3,196,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hilltop National Bank purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Quaker Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake 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 worth $25,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 316.7% during the second quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 25 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC increased its position in W.W. Grainger by 136.4% in the 2nd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 26 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.5%

W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,025.12 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $963.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $995.46. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $893.99 and a 1-year high of $1,139.15. The company has a market cap of $48.74 billion, a PE ratio of 28.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 1.59.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $10.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $4.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $9.87 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger’s 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, sell-side analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on GWW shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,006.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Barclays upped their price target 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 lowered their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,035.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $1,009.43.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,163 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $972.57, for a total transaction of $11,829,368.91. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 103,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,035,434.45. The trade was a 10.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 195 shares of the firm’s 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 value of $199,666.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly 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 disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 26,881 shares of company stock worth $26,157,155. 6.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

W.W. Grainger 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.