Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS Purchases 5,392 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 282.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,301 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 5,392 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $6,958,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of GWW. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,627,273 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,853,714,000 after buying an additional 238,895 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew 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 buying an additional 8,735 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,260,610 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $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 3rd quarter worth approximately $721,202,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 2nd quarter valued at $536,916,000. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,057.35 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $1,007.98 and a 200 day moving average of $991.23. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a twelve month low of $893.99 and a twelve month high of $1,139.15. The stock has a market cap of $50.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.12.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $10.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.95 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $4.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.64 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.75% and a return on equity of 49.40%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $9.87 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 39.000-39.750 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other news, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 195 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,023.93, for a total value of $199,666.35. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 3,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,249,953.82. This trade represents 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 the SEC website. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 14,523 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $972.81, for a total value of $14,128,119.63. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 107,862 shares in the company, valued at approximately $104,929,232.22. This represents a 11.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 26,881 shares of company stock valued at $26,157,155. Insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays increased their target price 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. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Oppenheimer upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $1,250.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,006.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $975.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,045.75.

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.