Van ECK Associates Corp Sells 2,365 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Van ECK Associates Corp trimmed its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 19.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,095 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,365 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $13,733,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. grew its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 483 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $487,000 after buying an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 788 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $795,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 305 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $308,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Andina Capital Management LLC now owns 404 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $408,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 34.5% during the 1st quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 39 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

NYSE GWW opened at $1,311.04 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $61.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.81. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $1,342.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,236.01. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $906.52 and a fifty-two week high of $1,419.91.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $12.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $11.30 by $0.71. The company had revenue of $5.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.96 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 48.73% and a net margin of 9.92%.W.W. Grainger’s quarterly revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $9.97 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 45.500-47.250 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 46.17 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be paid a $2.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on GWW shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,400.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,166.00 to $1,185.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,460.00 to $1,428.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, August 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,286.62.

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.