W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $1,349.74 and last traded at $1,319.4190, with a volume of 287671 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $1,329.80.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GWW has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upped 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 report on Wednesday, May 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,052.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Stephens upped their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,300.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Barclays upped their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $1,047.00 to $1,171.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,212.88.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.8%

The business’s 50 day moving average is $1,204.10 and its 200-day moving average is $1,110.83. The stock has a market cap of $62.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.49, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 2.69.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $11.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.21 by $1.44. The company had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.58 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 47.87%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $9.86 EPS. W.W. Grainger has set its FY 2026 guidance at 44.250-46.250 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that W.W. Grainger, Inc. will post 45.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $2.49 dividend. This represents a $9.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This is a boost from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.26. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is presently 26.79%.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In related news, VP Laurie R. Thomson sold 313 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,231.69, for a total value of $385,518.97. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $491,444.31. The trade was a 43.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Jonny M. Leroy sold 854 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,231.06, for a total transaction of $1,051,325.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 1,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,913,067.24. The trade was a 35.47% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 6,451 shares of company stock worth $7,380,743 in the last quarter. 6.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. increased its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 483 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $487,000 after acquiring an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in W.W. Grainger by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 788 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $795,000 after purchasing an additional 9 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 1,789 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,805,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Sawyer & Company Inc grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Sawyer & Company Inc now owns 676 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $682,000 after buying an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dearborn Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 305 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $308,000 after buying an additional 10 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.70% of the company’s stock.

W.W. Grainger Company 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.