Securian Asset Management Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Securian Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 42.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,227 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 893 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $1,238,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Accredited Investors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 211.1% during the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 314.3% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 29 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming raised its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 650.0% during the 2nd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 45 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 25.5% in the 3rd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 64 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on GWW shares. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Stephens raised their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,100.00 to $1,190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,199.13.

Insider Transactions at W.W. Grainger

In other W.W. Grainger news, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 1,488 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,114.28, for a total value of $1,658,048.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,541 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,745,625.48. This represents a 12.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Up 1.0%

GWW stock opened at $1,237.89 on Wednesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a one year low of $906.52 and a one year high of $1,286.56. The firm has a market cap of $58.44 billion, a PE ratio of 33.29, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.04. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $1,128.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,063.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 2.69.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.21 by $1.44. The company had revenue of $4.74 billion during 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $9.86 earnings per share. 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 45.24 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

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

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.