W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) VP Sells $199,666.35 in Stock

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) VP Krantz Nancy 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 in the company, valued at $3,249,953.82. The trade was a 5.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

GWW traded down $1.71 on Wednesday, hitting $1,020.37. The company had a trading volume of 255,050 shares, compared to its average volume of 290,285. The stock has a market cap of $48.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 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. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $960.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $995.45. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $893.99 and a 1-year high of $1,139.15.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $10.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.95 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $4.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $9.87 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 39.000-39.750 EPS. Equities analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th were issued a dividend of $2.26 per share. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 10th. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 25.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GWW has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,006.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,035.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein started 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 on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday. Finally, 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 note on Tuesday, November 25th. 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $1,009.43.

Institutional Trading of W.W. Grainger

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.9% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,731,880 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,462,252,000 after purchasing an additional 104,607 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 0.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,996,053 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,902,159,000 after buying an additional 13,779 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased 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 valued at $1,306,289,000 after buying an additional 23,418 shares during the period. Parnassus Investments LLC bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 3rd quarter valued at $721,202,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 659,158 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $628,151,000 after buying an additional 3,114 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

About W.W. Grainger

W.W. Grainger, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes maintenance, repair, and operating products and services primarily in North America, Japan, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, High-Touch Solutions N.A. and Endless Assortment. The company provides safety, security, material handling and storage equipment, pumps and plumbing equipment, cleaning and maintenance, and metalworking and hand tools.