Jonny Leroy Sells 854 Shares of W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Stock

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) SVP Jonny Leroy sold 854 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.06, for a total transaction of $1,051,325.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 1,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,913,067.24. The trade was a 35.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE:GWW opened at $1,271.77 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $906.52 and a 12 month high of $1,286.56. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,135.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,069.55. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a market capitalization of $60.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.21, a PEG ratio of 2.37 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 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 period in the previous year, the firm posted $9.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter 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, equities research analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.43 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a dividend of $2.49 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is presently 26.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GWW has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price 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 report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,199.13.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of GWW. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,462.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,071,854 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,081,554,000 after acquiring an additional 1,003,237 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth about $518,958,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position 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 worth $439,407,000 after acquiring an additional 434,199 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 61.1% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,027,286 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,036,584,000 after acquiring an additional 389,589 shares during the period. Finally, Sustainable Growth Advisers LP acquired a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the third quarter worth about $239,597,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: KeyCorp raised multiple earnings estimates for W.W. Grainger, including FY2026, Q2 2026, Q3 2026, and several 2027 periods, signaling improved expectations for profitability and growth. W.W. Grainger stock page
• Positive Sentiment: The company recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, with revenue up 10.1% year over year, and management raised full-year guidance, which supports the stock’s recent strength. W.W. Grainger earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: W.W. Grainger also increased its quarterly dividend, reinforcing confidence in cash flow and shareholder returns. W.W. Grainger dividend update
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and investors are focused on post-earnings commentary, including margin trends and whether the company can sustain its guidance. WW Grainger’s Q1 earnings call: Our top 5 analyst questions
• Negative Sentiment: Recent insider selling by several executives, including VP Laurie Thomson, SVP Jonny M. Leroy, and VP Paige K. Robbins, could weigh on sentiment even though the sales were disclosed and may simply reflect personal portfolio activity. W.W. Grainger insider buying and selling alert

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.