W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.05 EPS

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The industrial products company reported $9.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.57 by $0.05, Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $4.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.26 billion. W.W. Grainger had a net margin of 11.10% and a return on equity of 56.54%. The business’s revenue was up 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $9.61 earnings per share. W.W. Grainger updated its FY24 guidance to $38.00-40.50 EPS and its FY 2024 guidance to 38.000-40.500 EPS.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

GWW stock traded down $18.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $929.26. The company had a trading volume of 357,375 shares, compared to its average volume of 235,833. The firm has a market cap of $45.65 billion, a PE ratio of 25.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.88. W.W. Grainger has a 12 month low of $641.95 and a 12 month high of $1,034.18. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $980.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $872.58.

W.W. Grainger Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be given a $2.05 dividend. This is a positive change from W.W. Grainger’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.86. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. This represents a $8.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.88%. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 20.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on GWW. Loop Capital cut shares of W.W. Grainger from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $925.00 to $1,000.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $800.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 16th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on shares of W.W. Grainger from $775.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $913.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other W.W. Grainger news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of W.W. Grainger stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total value of $2,966,586.84. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,664,629.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,122 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $950.22, for a total value of $2,966,586.84. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 4,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,664,629.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Paige K. Robbins sold 3,813 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $968.88, for a total transaction of $3,694,339.44. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,756,231.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

About W.W. Grainger

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.