Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC Takes Position in W.W. Grainger, Inc. $GWW

Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC bought a new position in shares of W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 600 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $605,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GWW. Miller Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new position in W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 211.1% during the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 28 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in W.W. Grainger during the fourth quarter worth approximately $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 worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:GWW opened at $1,364.88 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $64.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a 50 day moving average of $1,234.04 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1,128.54. W.W. Grainger, Inc. has a 52-week low of $906.52 and a 52-week high of $1,365.42. 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.21 by $1.44. The business had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.58 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.86 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.69, for a total transaction of $385,518.97. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $491,444.31. The trade was a 43.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Deidra C. Merriwether sold 2,339 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,064.73, for a total value of $2,490,403.47. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 10,235 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,897,511.55. The trade was a 18.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,451 shares of company stock worth $7,380,743. 6.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GWW. Stephens raised their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. DA Davidson started coverage on shares of W.W. Grainger in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $1,250.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,170.00 to $1,337.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,190.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,217.00.

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.