W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Updates FY 2024 Earnings Guidance

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) issued an update on its FY 2024 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of 38.650-39.350 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 38.610. The company issued revenue guidance of $17.1 billion-$17.3 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $17.2 billion. W.W. Grainger also updated its FY24 guidance to $38.65-39.35 EPS.

W.W. Grainger Stock Down 0.4 %

GWW stock traded down $4.16 during trading on Friday, hitting $1,105.07. 248,255 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 220,030. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $1,035.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $971.79. The company has a current ratio of 2.59, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.96, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.15. W.W. Grainger has a 52-week low of $747.00 and a 52-week high of $1,130.01.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $9.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.98 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 51.78% and a net margin of 10.80%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $9.43 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that W.W. Grainger will post 38.69 EPS for the current year.

W.W. Grainger Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th will be given a $2.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. W.W. Grainger’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on GWW. Robert W. Baird upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $975.00 to $1,230.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of W.W. Grainger from $1,018.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. Bank of America began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a report on Monday, October 7th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Baird R W raised W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, W.W. Grainger has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $1,058.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.