William Blair Weighs in on W.W. Grainger, Inc.’s Q3 2024 Earnings (NYSE:GWW)

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (NYSE:GWW) – Investment analysts at William Blair dropped their Q3 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for W.W. Grainger in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, October 8th. William Blair analyst R. Merkel now anticipates that the industrial products company will post earnings per share of $9.91 for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $10.31. The consensus estimate for W.W. Grainger’s current full-year earnings is $38.75 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for W.W. Grainger’s FY2024 earnings at $38.60 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $10.49 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $10.78 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $10.86 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $10.32 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $42.44 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $46.55 EPS.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $9.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.58 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.35 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 53.25% and a net margin of 10.86%. The company’s revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.28 EPS.

GWW has been the topic of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,000.00 to $1,015.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on W.W. Grainger from $978.00 to $972.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley started coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $990.00 target price for the company. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of W.W. Grainger in a report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,005.20.

W.W. Grainger Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of GWW stock opened at $1,029.60 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. W.W. Grainger has a fifty-two week low of $674.41 and a fifty-two week high of $1,049.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $989.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $960.01. The stock has a market cap of $50.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.16.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.64%.

Insider Activity at W.W. Grainger

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total transaction of $13,481,538.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 98,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,281,004.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,000.82, for a total transaction of $27,524,551.64. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 111,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $111,650,478.38. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,037.68, for a total transaction of $13,481,538.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,567 shares in the company, valued at $102,281,004.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On W.W. Grainger

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in GWW. Stephens Inc. AR grew its stake in W.W. Grainger by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 1,124 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $931,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. XML Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter worth about $221,000. State of Tennessee Treasury Department increased its holdings in shares of W.W. Grainger by 58.3% in the 4th quarter. State of Tennessee Treasury Department now owns 22,351 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $18,522,000 after acquiring an additional 8,235 shares during the period. Unigestion Holding SA bought a new stake in W.W. Grainger in the 4th quarter valued at about $534,000. Finally, Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in W.W. Grainger by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 11,969 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $9,918,000 after purchasing an additional 330 shares during the period. 80.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.