Brokerages Set W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) Target Price at $1,216.44

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $1,230.1111.

Several research analysts have commented on GWW shares. Stephens cut shares of W.W. Grainger from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $1,355.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,171.00 to $1,166.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,337.00 to $1,460.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. DA Davidson started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $1,250.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of W.W. Grainger stock opened at $1,354.93 on Thursday. W.W. Grainger has a 12-month low of $906.52 and a 12-month high of $1,419.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.97 billion, a PE ratio of 36.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.03. 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’s fifty day moving average is $1,319.56 and its 200-day moving average is $1,187.11.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. The business 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%.W.W. Grainger’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $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 will post 45.46 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 854 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.06, for a total value 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,750,471.28. This trade represents a 39.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,624 shares of company stock worth $3,232,291. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its position in W.W. Grainger by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 5,341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,147,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Tema ETFs LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. Tema ETFs LLC now owns 1,585 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,156,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 35,180 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $47,859,000 after acquiring an additional 399 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 48.5% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 22,328 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $30,375,000 after acquiring an additional 7,297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vista Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 3.4% in the second quarter. Vista Investment Partners LLC now owns 3,519 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,787,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% 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.