W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Hits New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $1,419.91 and last traded at $1,396.7630, with a volume of 327628 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,395.01.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on GWW. Barclays reduced their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,171.00 to $1,166.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stephens cut shares of W.W. Grainger from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $1,355.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,250.00 price objective for the company. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,052.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,230.11.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

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 stock has a market capitalization of $65.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.03. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $1,312.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,179.76.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released 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 return on equity of 47.87% and a net margin of 9.70%.The company had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.58 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.46 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a $2.49 dividend. 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 dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.79%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 854 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,231.06, for a total transaction of $1,051,325.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 1,554 shares in the company, valued at $1,913,067.24. This represents a 35.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.69, for a total transaction of $385,518.97. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 399 shares in the company, valued at $491,444.31. This represents a 43.96% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 2,624 shares of company stock valued at $3,232,291 over the last three months. Insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Miller Capital Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 314.3% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 29 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in W.W. Grainger by 420.0% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 26 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.