W.W. Grainger
Market Cap
US$16.8b
Last Updated
2020/06/03 02:14 UTC
Data Sources
Company Financials +
Executive Summary
W.W. Grainger, Inc. distributes maintenance, repair, and operating (MRO) products and services in the United States, Canada, and internationally.
Rewards
Risk Analysis
Snowflake Analysis
Established dividend payer with adequate balance sheet.
Similar Companies
Share Price & News
How has W.W. Grainger's share price performed over time and what events caused price changes?
Latest Share Price and Events
Stable Share Price: GWW's share price has been volatile over the past 3 months.
Market Performance
7 Day Return
0.2%
GWW
2.3%
US Trade Distributors
1.7%
US Market
1 Year Return
17.0%
GWW
-0.1%
US Trade Distributors
8.5%
US Market
Return vs Industry: GWW exceeded the US Trade Distributors industry which returned 0.9% over the past year.
Return vs Market: GWW exceeded the US Market which returned 9.3% over the past year.
Shareholder returns
| GWW | Industry | Market | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 Day | 0.2% | 2.3% | 1.7% |
| 30 Day | 15.8% | 16.8% | 9.5% |
| 90 Day | 8.5% | -1.6% | 0.1% |
| 1 Year | 19.3%17.0% | 1.9%-0.1% | 11.0%8.5% |
| 3 Year | 97.6%85.8% | 19.4%13.9% | 32.2%23.5% |
| 5 Year | 44.6%30.0% | 25.9%16.2% | 58.6%40.8% |
Price Volatility Vs. Market
How volatile is W.W. Grainger's share price compared to the market and industry in the last 5 years?
Simply Wall St News
1 week ago | Simply Wall St
A Closer Look At W.W. Grainger, Inc.'s (NYSE:GWW) Impressive ROE2 weeks ago | Simply Wall St
Are W.W. Grainger's (NYSE:GWW) Statutory Earnings A Good Guide To Its Underlying Profitability?4 weeks ago | Simply Wall St
There's A Lot To Like About W.W. Grainger, Inc.'s (NYSE:GWW) Upcoming US$1.44 DividendValuation
Is W.W. Grainger undervalued compared to its fair value and its price relative to the market?
22.2x
Price to Earnings (PE) ratio
Share Price vs. Fair Value
Below Fair Value: GWW ($314.99) is trading above our estimate of fair value ($275.39)
Significantly Below Fair Value: GWW is trading above our estimate of fair value.
Price To Earnings Ratio
PE vs Industry: GWW is poor value based on its PE Ratio (22.2x) compared to the Trade Distributors industry average (15.7x).
PE vs Market: GWW is poor value based on its PE Ratio (22.2x) compared to the US market (15.7x).
Price to Earnings Growth Ratio
PEG Ratio: GWW is poor value based on its PEG Ratio (1.8x)
Price to Book Ratio
PB vs Industry: GWW is overvalued based on its PB Ratio (9.3x) compared to the US Trade Distributors industry average (1.2x).
Next Steps
Future Growth
How is W.W. Grainger forecast to perform in the next 1 to 3 years based on estimates from 19 analysts?
12.5%
Forecasted annual earnings growth
Earnings and Revenue Growth Forecasts
Analyst Future Growth Forecasts
Earnings vs Savings Rate: GWW's forecast earnings growth (12.5% per year) is above the savings rate (2.2%).
Earnings vs Market: GWW's earnings (12.5% per year) are forecast to grow slower than the US market (22% per year).
High Growth Earnings: GWW's earnings are forecast to grow, but not significantly.
Revenue vs Market: GWW's revenue (6.4% per year) is forecast to grow slower than the US market (8.8% per year).
High Growth Revenue: GWW's revenue (6.4% per year) is forecast to grow slower than 20% per year.
Earnings per Share Growth Forecasts
Future Return on Equity
Future ROE: GWW's Return on Equity is forecast to be very high in 3 years time (43.5%).
Next Steps
Past Performance
How has W.W. Grainger performed over the past 5 years?
2.8%
Historical annual earnings growth
Earnings and Revenue History
Quality Earnings: GWW has a large one-off loss of $308.0M impacting its March 31 2020 financial results.
Growing Profit Margin: GWW's current net profit margins (6.6%) are lower than last year (7.1%).
Past Earnings Growth Analysis
Earnings Trend: GWW's earnings have grown by 2.8% per year over the past 5 years.
Accelerating Growth: GWW's has had negative earnings growth over the past year, so it can't be compared to its 5-year average.
Earnings vs Industry: GWW had negative earnings growth (-4.3%) over the past year, making it difficult to compare to the Trade Distributors industry average (-5.5%).
Return on Equity
High ROE: Whilst GWW's Return on Equity (40.3%) is outstanding, this metric is skewed due to their high level of debt.
Next Steps
Financial Health
How is W.W. Grainger's financial position?
Financial Position Analysis
Short Term Liabilities: GWW's short term assets ($4.9B) exceed its short term liabilities ($1.5B).
Long Term Liabilities: GWW's short term assets ($4.9B) exceed its long term liabilities ($3.6B).
Debt to Equity History and Analysis
Debt Level: GWW's debt to equity ratio (153.3%) is considered high.
Reducing Debt: GWW's debt to equity ratio has increased from 20.2% to 153.3% over the past 5 years.
Debt Coverage: GWW's debt is well covered by operating cash flow (37.2%).
Interest Coverage: GWW's interest payments on its debt are well covered by EBIT (17.1x coverage).
Balance Sheet
Next Steps
Dividend
What is W.W. Grainger's current dividend yield, its reliability and sustainability?
1.83%
Current Dividend Yield
Dividend Yield vs Market
Notable Dividend: GWW's dividend (1.83%) is higher than the bottom 25% of dividend payers in the US market (1.69%).
High Dividend: GWW's dividend (1.83%) is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the US market (4.55%).
Stability and Growth of Payments
Stable Dividend: GWW's dividends per share have been stable in the past 10 years.
Growing Dividend: GWW's dividend payments have increased over the past 10 years.
Current Payout to Shareholders
Dividend Coverage: With its reasonably low payout ratio (40.6%), GWW's dividend payments are well covered by earnings.
Future Payout to Shareholders
Future Dividend Coverage: GWW's dividends in 3 years are forecast to be well covered by earnings (36.5% payout ratio).
Next Steps
Management
How experienced are the management team and are they aligned to shareholders interests?
1.7yrs
Average management tenure
CEO
DG Macpherson (51yo)
3.67yrs
Tenure
US$7,665,127
Compensation
Mr. Donald G. Macpherson, also known as DG, has been the Chief Executive Officer of W.W. Grainger, Inc. since October 01, 2016 and has been its Chairman since October 2017. Mr. Macpherson served as the Chi ...
CEO Compensation Analysis
Compensation vs Market: DG's total compensation ($USD7.67M) is below average for companies of similar size in the US market ($USD11.64M).
Compensation vs Earnings: DG's compensation has been consistent with company performance over the past year.
Leadership Team
| Name | Position | Tenure | Compensation | Ownership |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman & CEO | 3.67yrs | US$7.67m | 0.064% $10.7m | |
| Senior VP & CFO | 2.08yrs | US$2.88m | 0.013% $2.2m | |
| Senior VP & General Counsel | 20.42yrs | US$2.51m | 0.037% $6.2m | |
| Senior VP and Chief Technology | 0.58yr | US$1.45m | 0.016% $2.6m | |
| Senior VP & President of North American Sales and Service | no data | US$1.13m | no data | |
| Chief Technology Officer | 0.17yr | no data | no data | |
| Vice President of Investor Relations | 1.92yrs | no data | no data | |
| Senior VP & Chief Human Resources Officer | 1.5yrs | no data | 0.0011% $178.5k | |
| Managing Director of Endless Assortment Business | 0.33yr | no data | no data | |
| VP & Corporate Secretary | no data | no data | no data |
1.7yrs
Average Tenure
50yo
Average Age
Experienced Management: GWW's management team is not considered experienced ( 1.7 years average tenure), which suggests a new team.
Board Members
| Name | Position | Tenure | Compensation | Ownership |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman & CEO | 3.67yrs | US$7.67m | 0.064% $10.7m | |
| Independent Director | 21.42yrs | US$247.48k | 0.0063% $1.1m | |
| Lead Director | 4.17yrs | US$282.48k | 0.00075% $126.3k | |
| Independent Director | 21.42yrs | US$254.98k | 0.0086% $1.5m | |
| Independent Director | 14.08yrs | US$267.48k | 0.00037% $62.3k | |
| Independent Director | 14.33yrs | US$269.98k | 0.0019% $314.9k | |
| Independent Director | 10.17yrs | US$247.48k | 0.00057% $96.0k | |
| Independent Director | 5.92yrs | US$254.98k | 0.00075% $126.3k | |
| Independent Director | 2.92yrs | US$254.98k | no data | |
| Independent Director | 3.42yrs | US$254.98k | 0.00036% $60.6k |
8.0yrs
Average Tenure
62yo
Average Age
Experienced Board: GWW's board of directors are considered experienced (8 years average tenure).
Ownership
Who are the major shareholders and have insiders been buying or selling?
Insider Trading Volume
Insider Buying: Insufficient data to determine if insiders have bought more shares than they have sold in the past 3 months.
Recent Insider Transactions
Ownership Breakdown
Dilution of Shares: Shareholders have not been meaningfully diluted in the past year.
Top Shareholders
Company Information
W.W. Grainger, Inc.'s company bio, employee growth, exchange listings and data sources
Key Information
- Name: W.W. Grainger, Inc.
- Ticker: GWW
- Exchange: NYSE
- Founded: 1927
- Industry: Trading Companies and Distributors
- Sector: Capital Goods
- Market Cap: US$16.842b
- Shares outstanding: 53.47m
- Website: https://www.grainger.com
Number of Employees
Location
- W.W. Grainger, Inc.
- 100 Grainger Parkway
- Lake Forest
- Illinois
- 60045-5201
- United States
Listings
| Ticker | Exchange | Primary Security | Security Type | Country | Currency | Listed on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GWW | NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) | Yes | Common Stock | US | USD | Jul 1971 |
| GWW | DB (Deutsche Boerse AG) | Yes | Common Stock | DE | EUR | Jul 1971 |
| 0IZI | LSE (London Stock Exchange) | Yes | Common Stock | GB | USD | Jul 1971 |
| G1WW34 | BOVESPA (Bolsa de Valores de Sao Paulo) | BDR EACH 5 REPR 1 COM | BR | BRL | Jan 2020 |
Biography
W.W. Grainger, Inc. distributes maintenance, repair, and operating (MRO) products and services in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company provides material handling equipment, safety and security supplies, lighting and electrical products, power and hand tools, pumps and plumbing supplies, cleaning and maintenance supplies, and metalworking tools, as well as gloves, ladders, motors, and janitorial supplies. It also offers inventory management and technical support services. The company provides its products through branches, sales and service representatives, contact centers, distribution centers, and catalogs, as well as through e-commerce platform. It serves small and mid-sized businesses, large corporations, government entities, and other institutions. W.W. Grainger, Inc. was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Lake Forest, Illinois.
Company Analysis and Financial Data Status
| Data | Last Updated (UTC time) |
|---|---|
| Company Analysis | 2020/06/03 02:14 |
| End of Day Share Price | 2020/06/02 00:00 |
| Earnings | 2020/03/31 |
| Annual Earnings | 2019/12/31 |
Unless specified all financial data is based on a yearly period but updated quarterly. This is known as Trailing Twelve Month (TTM) or Last Twelve Month (LTM) Data. Learn more here.