Fifth Third Bancorp Has $19.19 Million Stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 445.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,592 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,364 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $19,190,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GWW. Miller Capital Partners Inc. bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of W.W. Grainger by 314.3% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 29 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Caitlin John LLC bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at W.W. Grainger

In other news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,231.69, for a total transaction of $385,518.97. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $491,444.31. This trade represents a 43.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 1,457 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the vice president directly owned 2,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,750,471.28. The trade was a 39.50% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 2,624 shares of company stock worth $3,232,291 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.30% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

GWW opened at $1,391.16 on Tuesday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12-month low of $906.52 and a 12-month high of $1,400.00. The stock has a market cap of $65.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.42, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.03. The business has a 50 day moving average of $1,297.00 and a 200-day moving average of $1,169.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 47.87% and a net margin of 9.70%.The business had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $9.86 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.47 earnings per share for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on GWW shares. Barclays reduced their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,171.00 to $1,166.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wolfe Research upgraded W.W. Grainger from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,190.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,052.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,216.44.

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.