Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Decreases Stock Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR lowered its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 27.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 4,801 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,842 shares during the quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $4,575,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Golden State Equity Partners purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the third quarter worth about $350,000. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in W.W. Grainger by 15.3% during the third quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,688 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,609,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Delta Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the third quarter valued at approximately $233,000. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 278 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $265,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,077 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,793,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,163 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $972.57, for a total value of $11,829,368.91. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 103,885 shares in the company, valued at $101,035,434.45. The trade was a 10.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Krantz Nancy L. Berardinelli sold 195 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,023.93, for a total transaction of $199,666.35. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 3,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,249,953.82. This trade represents a 5.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 26,881 shares of company stock valued at $26,157,155 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $963.00 to $975.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,006.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Monday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, November 12th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $975.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $1,009.43.

W.W. Grainger Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of GWW opened at $1,004.06 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $893.99 and a 1-year high of $1,139.15. The company has a 50-day moving average of $976.05 and a 200 day moving average of $991.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.16, a PEG ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 1.59.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $10.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.95 by $0.26. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.75% and a return on equity of 49.40%. The business had revenue of $4.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $9.87 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 39.000-39.750 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

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

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.