Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Sells 751 Shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lowered its position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,120 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 751 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.06% of W.W. Grainger worth $40,975,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Banco BTG Pactual S.A. purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,048,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the second quarter valued at about $324,824,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1,353.1% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 31,242 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $42,502,000 after buying an additional 29,092 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth about $11,591,000. Finally, Strs Ohio lifted its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 253.8% in the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 3,747 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,781,000 after acquiring an additional 2,688 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,305.72 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $1,342.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $1,234.83. The company has a market cap of $61.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.04. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 12 month low of $906.52 and a 12 month high of $1,419.91.

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

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. DA Davidson increased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,250.00 to $1,260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 9th. Wolfe Research upgraded W.W. Grainger from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings raised W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut 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 report on Wednesday, August 5th. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,286.62.

More W.W. Grainger News

Here are the key news stories impacting W.W. Grainger this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded GWW to a No. 2 (Buy) rank, citing growing optimism about the company’s earnings prospects. Zacks rating upgrade article
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised multiple future EPS estimates, including FY2027 to $50.40 from $50.21 and FY2028 to $54.37 from $54.17. Estimates were also increased for Q1 2027, Q2 2027, Q4 2027 and Q2 2028, suggesting modestly improving expectations for profitability. MarketBeat analyst estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Grainger’s latest reported quarter exceeded expectations, with EPS of $12.01 versus the $11.30 consensus and revenue of $5.02 billion versus $4.96 billion. Revenue increased 10.3% year over year, supporting the case for continued earnings growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street commentary is mixed: GWW has outperformed the broader market over the past year, but analysts remain cautious about its future upside. Barchart analyst outlook article
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation may be limiting enthusiasm. Grainger trades at roughly 33 times earnings, while its shares are below the 50-day moving average after approaching a 12-month high. Investors may be taking profits or demanding stronger estimate increases before bidding the stock higher. MSN analyst outlook article

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.