Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Trims Stock Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. cut its stake in W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. 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.’s holdings in W.W. Grainger were worth $40,975,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Miller Capital Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 420.0% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 26 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Caitlin John LLC bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. 80.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key 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

W.W. Grainger Price Performance

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

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $12.01 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $5.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.96 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $9.97 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 45.500-47.250 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 46.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GWW has been the topic of several research reports. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on W.W. Grainger from $1,350.00 to $1,375.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Stephens downgraded W.W. Grainger from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $1,355.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Weiss Ratings raised W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $1,286.62.

W.W. Grainger 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.