W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) Updates FY24 Earnings Guidance

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) issued an update on its FY24 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of $38.65-39.35 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of $38.70. The company issued revenue guidance of $17.1-17.3 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $17.20 billion. W.W. Grainger also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 38.650-39.350 EPS.

W.W. Grainger Stock Performance

GWW stock traded down $4.16 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $1,105.07. 248,255 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 234,978. The company has a current ratio of 2.30, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,035.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $971.79. W.W. Grainger has a 12 month low of $747.00 and a 12 month high of $1,130.01.

W.W. Grainger (NYSE:GWW) last posted 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 firm had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.40 billion. W.W. Grainger had a return on equity of 53.25% and a net margin of 10.86%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $9.43 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that W.W. Grainger will post 38.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

W.W. Grainger Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. This represents a $8.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. W.W. Grainger’s payout ratio is currently 22.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Baird R W upgraded W.W. Grainger from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research upgraded W.W. Grainger to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on 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. Loop Capital raised their price target on W.W. Grainger from $900.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on W.W. Grainger in a research report on Monday, October 7th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $925.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, W.W. Grainger has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1,058.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of W.W. Grainger 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 12,992 shares of W.W. Grainger 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Donald G. Macpherson sold 27,502 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 111,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $111,650,478.38. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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.