W.W. Grainger, Inc.

Wholesale-Durable Goods

GWWMixed10 of 11 basics passed

$1 289.79

+1.66%

Market cap $60.8B

$1 289.79

+1.66%

Market cap $60.8B

Founded in 1927, W.W. Grainger originally distributed various motors via a mail-order catalog.

It is a $60.8B industrial company. Revenue grew 7.8% over the last year, it keeps 10¢ of every dollar of sales as profit, and its net debt equals ~1.2 years of free cash flow. It trades at 32.5× earnings — near the highest of its own history.

Website: grainger.com
Location: Lake Forest, IL
Employees: 25 000
Sector: Industrials
Founded: 1927

Share price · 3 years

$710.88 → $1 289.79+81.4%

price only — dividends excluded

Key facts · TTM

Revenue: total sales; $18.8B
Profit: keeps 10¢ of every $1 sold; $1.87B
Free cash flow: cash left after running the business; $1.51B
Net debt: debt minus cash on hand; $1.78B
P/E: years of profit in the price; 32.5
EPS: earnings per share, TTM; $38.96
Dividend: pays out 26% of profit · 33% of FCF; 0.81%
Shares: down 21% since 2016 — buybacks; 48.0M
Volatility: beta vs the market — under 1 swings less; 0.97

Revenue, last 10 years

52-week range

Low $918.18$1 289.79High $1 402.03

Today's price is 77% of the way from the year's low to its high.

P/E vs its history5y

32.5×median 25.9×

Higher than 92% of past days — near the highest of its own history.

Valuation vs own history

P/E

32.5×

P/S

3.2×

EV/EBITDA

22.9×

P/B

13.5×

55%

FCF yield

2.5%

15%

Share of the last ~5 years that was pricier than today (unusually expensive vs its own history). Based on the daily valuation record.

Standing in Industrials

Size$60.8Btop 20%
Revenue growth+6%top 38%
Net margin10%top 50%
Return on equity49%top 9%
P/E32.5×top 66%
Dividend yield0.81%top 66%

Ranked against 130 Industrials companies with a full CV — for P/E, lower ranks higher.

Skills

Six independent scores, 0–100, built from reported numbers and valuation history. Click a row to see how it was scored.

Strong growth, profitability, quality and moat; Valuation lags behind.

Valuation37

P/E vs own history92th pct · 0/25
FCF yield2.5% · 5/25
P/S3.2x · 20/25
EV/EBITDA20.8x · 12/25

Growth77

Revenue CAGR8.3% · 12/25
Net income CAGR13.1% · 20/25
EPS CAGR ~5Y22.4% · 25/25
Fwd implied growth27.6% · 20/25

Profitability75

ROIC30.9% · 25/25
ROE48.7% · 25/25
Net margin9.9% · 13/25
Operating margin14.6% · 12/25

Health62

Altman Zn/a · 0/25
Current ratio2.81 · 25/25
Interest coverage31.0x · 25/25
Net cash / debtD/A 20% · 12/25

Quality87

Piotroski F6/9 · 15/25
Beneish M-2.68 · 25/25
FCF conversion81% · 22/25
Margin stabilityσ 2.7% · 25/25

Moat81

ROIC >12% years10/10 yrs · 25/25
Median gross margin38.9% · 13/25
FCF-positive years10/10 yrs · 25/25
Worst-year net marginworst 5.6% · 18/25

How the scores work →

Experience

The company's career so far — founding, the IPO, landmark products and acquisitions, plus revenue milestones and insider buying.

FY2024Financial
Best year on record
$1.91B net income
FY2016Financial
Profitable every year on record
10 consecutive profitable years in our data
FY2016Financial
Revenue already above $10B
$10.1B in first reported year
FY2016Financial
Positive free cash flow every year since
10-year streak
Sep 1, 2015Acquisition
September 1, 2015: Cromwell Group Holdings (UK) Ltd The initial aggregate purchase price for the acquisition under…
Aug 23, 2013Acquisition
The purchase price is $30 million, less cash acquired. * August 23, 2013: E&R Industrial Sales Inc
Dec 31, 2012Acquisition
The purchase price is $116 million, less cash acquired. * December 31, 2012: Techni-tool, Inc
1995Product
The grainger.com website was launched with an electronic catalog, later evolving to an eCommerce platform
1927Founded
Grainger, Inc. is an American Fortune 500 industrial supply company founded in 1927 in Chicago by the company's…

Achievements

Verifiable track record, straight from the reported numbers.

#27 largest of 130 Industrials companies by market cap

$10 000 invested in 2021 would be worth ~$31 468 today — price return only

$17.9B revenue in FY2025

Revenue up 7.8% year over year

Profitable 10 years in a row

Positive free cash flow 10 years in a row

25 000 employees

ROIC of 30.9%

Strengths & watch-outs

What a bull and a bear would each point to. Both lists come from the reported numbers, not opinions.

Strengths

Interest covered 31.0× by operating earnings
High returns on invested capital (ROIC 30.9%)

Watch-outs

Nothing stands out as a concern in the available data.

Qualifications

The basics a company should meet before you research it further. Each check uses the reported numbers.

10 of 11 checks passed

Revenue growing — the company sells more than a year ago+7.8% YoY
Profitable — makes more than it spends$1.87B TTM
Profit growing — earnings are higher than last year+5.4% YoY
Generates cash — cash left after running and investing$1.51B TTM
Debt under control — could handle its obligations~1.2y of cash flow to repay
Established company — not a micro-cap — lower blow-up risk$60.8B market cap
Not printing shares — share count not ballooning — you keep your slice-10.6% shares over ~5y
Proven track record — years of profitability behind it10/10 profitable years
Financially stable — balance sheet not near distresshealth score 50/100
Pays a dividend — returns cash to shareholdersyield 0.81%
Valuation not extreme — price not wildly above earningsP/E 32.5

Peer comparisonW.W. Grainger, Inc. vs 6 largest industrials peers — cap, P/E, growth and margin side by sideOpen ▾

Company	Market cap	P/E	Revenue growth	Net margin	Profile
GWW this company	$60.8B	32.5	+7.8%	9.9%	Mixed
LRCX Lam Research Corp	$399.2B	54.9	+26.0%	31.3%	Strong
CAT Caterpillar Inc.	$368.0B	33.9	+18.4%	14.5%	Solid
RTX RTX Corporation	$251.3B	32.4	+11.8%	8.3%	Strained
DE Deere & Company	$167.7B	34.4	+8.3%	10.2%	Solid
ETN Eaton Corporation, plc	$167.2B	43.6	+15.5%	12.8%	Mixed
UNP Union Pacific Corp.	$166.8B	22.6	+4.2%	28.8%	Strained

Head-to-head: GWW vs LRCX · GWW vs CAT · GWW vs RTX

References

What covering analysts publish about the company — information only, not a recommendation.

Strong buy 4Buy 3Hold 14Sell 3

Appendix · Financial records

The full statements behind this CV, FY2016–FY2025. For readers who want to check the numbers.

Profit & lossRevenue $18.8B · net income $1.87B (TTM)Open ▾

Profit & loss

Revenue and profit over the company's career — the income statement, visualised.

How FY2025 revenue flows to profit

RevenueNet income

Revenue (TTM)

$18.8B

YoY 7.8%

Net income (TTM)

$1.87B

Margin 9.9%

Gross margin

39.4%

Operating margin

14.6%

P/E ratio

32.5

Dividend yield

0.81%

Income statement — full detail

Figures in USD billions · EPS in USD

	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
Revenue	11.8	13.0	15.2	16.5	17.2	17.9
Gross profit	4.2	4.7	5.8	6.5	6.8	7.0
Operating income (EBIT)	1.0	1.5	2.2	2.6	2.6	2.5
Net income	0.7	1.0	1.5	1.8	1.9	1.7
EPS (diluted)	12.94	19.98	30.27	36.51	38.96	35.54

Cash flowFree cash flow $1.51B · operating cash flow $2.17B (TTM)Open ▾

Cash flow statement

Cash generated by the business and what is left after investment — year by year.

Operating cash flowFree cash flow

Free cash flow (TTM)

$1.51B

Margin 8.0%

Operating cash flow (TTM)

$2.17B

FCF margin

8.0%

Cash flow statement — full detail

Figures in USD billions

	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
Operating cash flow	1.1	0.9	1.3	2.0	2.1	2.0
Capital expenditure	-0.2	-0.3	-0.3	-0.4	-0.5	-0.7
Free cash flow	0.9	0.7	1.1	1.6	1.6	1.3
FCF margin	7.8%	5.2%	7.1%	9.6%	9.1%	7.4%

Balance sheetAssets $8.96B · net debt $1.78B (FY2025)Open ▾

Balance sheet

How the balance sheet is built — what it owns versus how it is financed.

How $8.96B of assets is financed

58%

42%

Liabilities $5.23B — borrowed moneyEquity $3.74B — owners' stake

Cash vs debt

Total debt $2.36B − cash $585M = net debt $1.78B

Cash on hand covers 25% of debt.

Debt repayment

0.0 yrs

Years of free cash flow to clear net debt

Interest coverage

31.0x

EBIT ÷ interest expense

ROE

48.7%

Profit per $1 of equity

Balance sheet — full detail

Figures in USD billions

	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
Cash & equivalents	0.6	0.2	0.3	0.7	1.0	0.6
Total assets	6.3	6.6	7.6	8.1	8.8	9.0
Total liabilities	4.5	4.7	5.1	5.0	5.5	5.2
Total debt	2.4	2.4	2.3	2.3	2.3	2.4
Equity	1.8	1.9	2.4	3.1	3.4	3.7
Net debt	1.8	2.1	2.0	1.6	1.2	1.8

Want the live picture — intraday moves, valuation history and full analysis?

Deeper analysis of GWW on PreMarketPrice

Figures are derived from company filings (quarterly values normalised from as-filed year-to-date data where applicable) and may be delayed, restated or incomplete. This page is information, not investment advice. Latest price $1 289.79 · market cap $60.8B.