Blue Trust Inc. Trims Holdings in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Blue Trust Inc. reduced its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 20.5% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 93 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 24 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $97,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hilltop National Bank purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the second quarter worth $25,000. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. increased its stake in shares of W.W. Grainger by 316.7% during the second quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 25 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Nova Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 52.6% in the second quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 29 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. 80.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.86, for a total transaction of $496,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 1,771 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,758,355.06. This trade represents a 22.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 6.10% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

Shares of NYSE GWW opened at $954.39 on Friday. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 1-year low of $893.99 and a 1-year high of $1,227.66. The company has a market cap of $45.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 2.82 and a quick ratio of 1.64. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $981.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,015.25.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.07 by ($0.10). W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 10.99% and a return on equity of 49.63%. The business had revenue of $4.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $9.76 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2025 guidance at 38.500-40.250 EPS. Analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 40.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were given a $2.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. This represents a $9.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio is 22.94%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GWW has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $963.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on W.W. Grainger from $1,215.00 to $1,160.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 11th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,176.00 to $1,007.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $950.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $1,053.71.

W.W. Grainger Company Profile

W.W. Grainger, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes maintenance, repair, and operating products and services primarily in North America, Japan, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, High-Touch Solutions N.A. and Endless Assortment. The company provides safety, security, material handling and storage equipment, pumps and plumbing equipment, cleaning and maintenance, and metalworking and hand tools.