Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Trims Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lowered its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 97.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,150 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 70,159 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $2,345,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in W.W. Grainger by 1,462.1% during 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 buying an additional 1,003,237 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth about $518,958,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 34,269.9% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 435,466 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $439,407,000 after acquiring an additional 434,199 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 61.1% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,027,286 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,036,584,000 after acquiring an additional 389,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sustainable Growth Advisers LP bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 3rd quarter valued at about $239,597,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on GWW. Wall Street Zen raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. 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. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,171.00 to $1,166.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stephens boosted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,190.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,216.44.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,362.19 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $1,260.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $1,148.59. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $906.52 and a 12-month high of $1,390.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market cap of $64.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.04.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.21 by $1.44. The firm had revenue of $4.74 billion for 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a $2.49 dividend. This is an increase from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 26.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,488 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,114.28, for a total transaction of $1,658,048.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 10,541 shares in the company, valued at $11,745,625.48. This trade represents a 12.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,232.29, for a total transaction of $1,795,446.53. Following the transaction, the vice president directly 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 4,112 shares of company stock valued at $4,890,339 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

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.