W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW) 10-Year Financial Performance & Capital Metrics

GWW • • Industrial / General

IndustrialsIndustrial DistributionGeneral Industrial MRO DistributionBroadline Industrial Distributors

AboutW.W. Grainger, Inc. distributes maintenance, repair, and operating (MRO) products and services in the United States, Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, High-Touch Solutions N.A. and Endless Assortment. It offers safety and security supplies, material handling and storage equipment, pumps and plumbing equipment, cleaning and maintenance supplies, and metalworking and hand tools. It also offers inventory management and technical support services. The company serves businesses, corporations, government entities, and other institutions through sales and service representatives, and electronic and ecommerce channels. W.W. Grainger, Inc. was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Lake Forest, Illinois.Show more

Revenue $17.17B +4.2%
EBITDA $2.87B +3.4%
Net Income $1.91B +4.4%
EPS (Diluted) 38.71 +6.0%
Gross Margin 38.96% -1.2%
EBITDA Margin 16.74% -0.7%
Operating Margin 15.36% -1.3%
Net Margin 11.12% +0.2%
ROE 53.44% -9.8%
ROIC 34.75% -3.8%
Debt/Equity 0.86 +7.5%
Interest Coverage 34.25 +24.2%

Technical Analysis

Key Insights

Based on financial data analysis

✓Strengths

✓Dividend Aristocrat: 36 years of consecutive increases
✓Excellent 3Y average ROE of 58.6%
✓Strong 5Y profit CAGR of 17.6%
✓Share count reduced 2.2% through buybacks
✓Efficient asset utilization: 1.9x turnover

✗Weaknesses

✗Expensive at 14.1x book value

Price & Volume

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Growth Metrics

Revenue CAGR

10Y5.59%

5Y8.37%

3Y9.65%

TTM4.83%

Profit (Net Income) CAGR

10Y9.06%

5Y17.59%

3Y22.32%

TTM-5.41%

EPS CAGR

10Y12.95%

5Y20.15%

3Y24.66%

TTM-3.88%

ROCE

10Y Avg32.01%

5Y Avg35.85%

3Y Avg41.94%

Latest41.07%

Peer Comparison

Broadline Industrial Distributors

Name	Market Cap	Current Price	P/E Ratio	Revenue Growth 1Y	Net Margin	ROE	FCF Yield	Debt/Equity
FASTFastenal Company	49.97B	43.53	43.53	2.71%	15.34%	31.5%	1.89%	0.13
DXPEDXP Enterprises, Inc.	1.89B	120.69	28.60	7.35%	4.45%	17.86%	4.08%	1.60
GWWW.W. Grainger, Inc.	50.56B	1063.30	27.47	4.19%	9.75%	43.68%	3.11%	0.86
GICGlobal Industrial Company	1.22B	31.65	20.03	3.26%	5.11%	21.58%	3.85%	0.30

Profit & Loss

	Dec 2015	Dec 2016	Dec 2017	Dec 2018	Dec 2019	Dec 2020	Dec 2021	Dec 2022	Dec 2023	Dec 2024
Sales/Revenue+	9.97B	10.14B	10.42B	11.22B	11.49B	11.8B	13.02B	15.23B	16.48B	17.17B
Revenue Growth %	0%	0.02%	0.03%	0.08%	0.02%	0.03%	0.1%	0.17%	0.08%	0.04%
Cost of Goods Sold+	5.74B	6.02B	6.33B	6.87B	7.09B	7.56B	8.3B	9.38B	9.98B	10.48B
COGS % of Revenue	0.58%	0.59%	0.61%	0.61%	0.62%	0.64%	0.64%	0.62%	0.61%	0.61%
Gross Profit+	4.23B	4.11B	4.1B	4.35B	4.4B	4.24B	4.72B	5.85B	6.5B	6.69B
Gross Margin %	0.42%	0.41%	0.39%	0.39%	0.38%	0.36%	0.36%	0.38%	0.39%	0.39%
Gross Profit Growth %	-0.02%	-0.03%	-0%	0.06%	0.01%	-0.04%	0.11%	0.24%	0.11%	0.03%
Operating Expenses+	2.93B	3B	3.05B	3.19B	3.13B	3.22B	3.17B	3.63B	3.93B	4.05B
OpEx % of Revenue	0.29%	0.3%	0.29%	0.28%	0.27%	0.27%	0.24%	0.24%	0.24%	0.24%
Selling, General & Admin	2.82B	2.83B	2.85B	3.19B	3.13B	3.22B	3.17B	3.63B	3.93B	4.02B
SG&A % of Revenue	0.28%	0.28%	0.27%	0.28%	0.27%	0.27%	0.24%	0.24%	0.24%	0.23%
Research & Development	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
R&D % of Revenue	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Other Operating Expenses	-3M	-3M	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	35M
Operating Income+	1.3B	1.12B	1.05B	1.16B	1.26B	1.02B	1.55B	2.21B	2.56B	2.64B
Operating Margin %	0.13%	0.11%	0.1%	0.1%	0.11%	0.09%	0.12%	0.15%	0.16%	0.15%
Operating Income Growth %	-0.03%	-0.14%	-0.06%	0.1%	0.09%	-0.19%	0.52%	0.43%	0.16%	0.03%
EBITDA+	1.53B	1.37B	1.31B	1.41B	1.49B	1.2B	1.73B	2.42B	2.78B	2.87B
EBITDA Margin %	0.15%	0.13%	0.13%	0.13%	0.13%	0.1%	0.13%	0.16%	0.17%	0.17%
EBITDA Growth %	-0.02%	-0.1%	-0.04%	0.08%	0.06%	-0.2%	0.45%	0.39%	0.15%	0.03%
D&A (Non-Cash Add-back)	227.97M	248.86M	259M	254M	228M	176M	186M	200M	214M	237M
EBIT	1.28B	1.09B	1.02B	1.17B	1.29B	1.04B	1.55B	2.2B	2.59B	2.66B
Net Interest Income+	-32.41M	-75M	-86M	-82M	-79M	-93M	-87M	-93M	-93M	-77M
Interest Income	1.17M	1M	3M	6M	0	0	0	0	0	0
Interest Expense	33.57M	76M	89M	88M	79M	93M	87M	93M	93M	77M
Other Income/Expense	-49.62M	-100.44M	-99M	-77M	-53M	-72M	-62M	-69M	-65M	-53M
Pretax Income+	1.25B	1.02B	935.32M	1.08B	1.21B	947M	1.49B	2.15B	2.5B	2.58B
Pretax Margin %	0.13%	0.1%	0.09%	0.1%	0.11%	0.08%	0.11%	0.14%	0.15%	0.15%
Income Tax+	465.53M	386.22M	312.88M	258M	314M	192M	371M	533M	597M	595M
Effective Tax Rate %	0.61%	0.59%	0.63%	0.72%	0.7%	0.73%	0.7%	0.72%	0.73%	0.74%
Net Income+	769M	605.93M	585.73M	782M	849M	695M	1.04B	1.55B	1.83B	1.91B
Net Margin %	0.08%	0.06%	0.06%	0.07%	0.07%	0.06%	0.08%	0.1%	0.11%	0.11%
Net Income Growth %	-0.04%	-0.21%	-0.03%	0.34%	0.09%	-0.18%	0.5%	0.48%	0.18%	0.04%
Net Income (Continuing)	785.17M	632.84M	623M	823M	895M	755M	1.11B	1.61B	1.9B	1.99B
Discontinued Operations	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Minority Interest	86.08M	107.83M	138M	172M	205M	265M	286M	295M	326M	345M
EPS (Diluted)+	11.58	9.87	10.02	13.83	15.46	12.94	19.98	30.27	36.51	38.71
EPS Growth %	0.01%	-0.15%	0.02%	0.38%	0.12%	-0.16%	0.54%	0.52%	0.21%	0.06%
EPS (Basic)	11.69	9.94	10.07	13.93	15.52	12.99	20.10	30.39	36.65	39.04
Diluted Shares Outstanding	65.77M	60.84M	57.98M	56.53M	54.9M	53.7M	52.2M	51.1M	50.1M	49M
Basic Shares Outstanding	65.16M	60.43M	57.67M	56.14M	54.7M	53.5M	51.9M	50.9M	49.9M	48.9M
Dividend Payout Ratio	0.4%	0.5%	0.52%	0.4%	0.39%	0.49%	0.34%	0.24%	0.21%	0.22%

Balance Sheet

	Dec 2015	Dec 2016	Dec 2017	Dec 2018	Dec 2019	Dec 2020	Dec 2021	Dec 2022	Dec 2023	Dec 2024
Total Current Assets+	3B	3.02B	3.21B	3.56B	3.56B	3.92B	4.01B	4.98B	5.27B	5.74B
Cash & Short-Term Investments	240.26M	274.15M	326.88M	538M	360M	585M	241M	325M	660M	1.04B
Cash Only	240.26M	274.15M	326.88M	538M	360M	585M	241M	325M	660M	1.04B
Short-Term Investments	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Accounts Receivable	1.21B	1.22B	1.32B	1.39B	1.43B	1.47B	1.75B	2.13B	2.19B	2.23B
Days Sales Outstanding	44.27	44.04	46.39	45.05	45.28	45.61	49.16	51.13	48.55	47.45
Inventory	1.41B	1.41B	1.43B	1.54B	1.66B	1.73B	1.87B	2.25B	2.27B	2.31B
Days Inventory Outstanding	89.9	85.24	82.45	81.84	85.21	83.68	82.22	87.68	82.86	80.31
Other Current Assets	85.67M	81.77M	87M	83M	104M	0	0	266M	156M	163M
Total Non-Current Assets+	2.81B	2.67B	2.6B	2.32B	2.45B	2.38B	2.58B	2.61B	2.87B	3.09B
Property, Plant & Equipment	1.43B	1.42B	1.39B	1.35B	1.4B	1.6B	1.82B	1.83B	2.09B	2.3B
Fixed Asset Turnover	6.97x	7.13x	7.49x	8.30x	8.20x	7.35x	7.17x	8.33x	7.90x	7.47x
Goodwill	582.34M	527.15M	543.9M	424M	429M	391M	384M	371M	370M	355M
Intangible Assets	648.01M	586.13M	569.12M	460M	304M	228M	238M	232M	234M	243M
Long-Term Investments	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Other Non-Current Assets	63.53M	75.14M	71M	68M	306M	138M	142M	180M	182M	196M
Total Assets+	5.81B	5.69B	5.8B	5.87B	6B	6.29B	6.59B	7.59B	8.15B	8.83B
Asset Turnover	1.72x	1.78x	1.80x	1.91x	1.91x	1.87x	1.98x	2.01x	2.02x	1.94x
Asset Growth %	0.1%	-0.02%	0.02%	0.01%	0.02%	0.05%	0.05%	0.15%	0.07%	0.08%
Total Current Liabilities+	1.79B	1.63B	1.51B	1.5B	1.68B	1.44B	1.53B	2.01B	1.83B	2.31B
Accounts Payable	583.47M	650.09M	731M	678M	719M	779M	816M	1.05B	954M	952M
Days Payables Outstanding	37.09	39.4	42.17	36.01	37.02	37.62	35.88	40.75	34.88	33.16
Short-Term Debt	600.42M	406.11M	95M	130M	301M	8M	0	35M	34M	499M
Deferred Revenue (Current)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Other Current Liabilities	321.25M	267.47M	347M	395M	313M	307M	319M	334M	327M	324M
Current Ratio	1.68x	1.85x	2.13x	2.37x	2.12x	2.72x	2.63x	2.48x	2.88x	2.49x
Quick Ratio	0.89x	0.99x	1.18x	1.34x	1.13x	1.52x	1.40x	1.36x	1.64x	1.49x
Cash Conversion Cycle	97.08	89.88	86.67	90.88	93.48	91.67	95.5	98.06	96.53	94.61
Total Non-Current Liabilities+	1.67B	2.16B	2.47B	2.28B	2.27B	2.76B	2.9B	2.84B	2.88B	2.82B
Long-Term Debt	1.39B	1.84B	2.25B	2.09B	1.91B	2.39B	2.36B	2.28B	2.27B	2.28B
Capital Lease Obligations	0	0	0	0	0	162M	334M	318M	381M	327M
Deferred Tax Liabilities	154.35M	126.1M	111M	103M	106M	110M	121M	121M	104M	101M
Other Non-Current Liabilities	173.74M	192.56M	110M	86M	247M	100M	87M	120M	124M	114M
Total Liabilities	3.46B	3.79B	3.98B	3.78B	3.94B	4.2B	4.43B	4.85B	4.71B	5.13B
Total Debt+	1.94B	2.25B	2.34B	2.22B	2.21B	2.62B	2.76B	2.71B	2.75B	3.18B
Net Debt	1.7B	1.97B	2.02B	1.68B	1.85B	2.03B	2.52B	2.38B	2.09B	2.15B
Debt / Equity	0.82x	1.18x	1.28x	1.06x	1.08x	1.25x	1.28x	0.99x	0.80x	0.86x
Debt / EBITDA	1.27x	1.64x	1.79x	1.57x	1.49x	2.19x	1.59x	1.12x	0.99x	1.11x
Net Debt / EBITDA	1.11x	1.44x	1.54x	1.19x	1.24x	1.70x	1.45x	0.99x	0.75x	0.75x
Interest Coverage	38.73x	14.73x	11.78x	13.16x	15.97x	10.96x	17.78x	23.82x	27.58x	34.25x
Total Equity+	2.35B	1.91B	1.83B	2.09B	2.06B	2.09B	2.16B	2.73B	3.44B	3.7B
Equity Growth %	-0.28%	-0.19%	-0.04%	0.14%	-0.02%	0.02%	0.03%	0.27%	0.26%	0.08%
Book Value per Share	35.77	31.32	31.53	37.02	37.52	38.98	41.38	53.52	68.68	75.57
Total Shareholders' Equity	2.27B	1.8B	1.69B	1.92B	1.85B	1.83B	1.87B	2.44B	3.12B	3.36B
Common Stock	54.83M	54.83M	55M	55M	55M	55M	55M	55M	55M	55M
Retained Earnings	6.8B	7.11B	7.41B	7.87B	8.4B	8.78B	9.5B	10.7B	12.16B	13.68B
Treasury Stock	-5.37B	-6.13B	-6.68B	-6.97B	-7.63B	-8.18B	-8.86B	-9.45B	-10.29B	-11.5B
Accumulated OCI	-221.09M	-272.29M	-135M	-171M	-154M	-61M	-96M	-180M	-172M	-274M
Minority Interest	86.08M	107.83M	138M	172M	205M	265M	286M	295M	326M	345M

Cash Flow

	Dec 2015	Dec 2016	Dec 2017	Dec 2018	Dec 2019	Dec 2020	Dec 2021	Dec 2022	Dec 2023	Dec 2024
Cash from Operations+	1.01B	1B	1.06B	1.06B	1.04B	1.12B	937M	1.33B	2.03B	2.11B
Operating CF Margin %	0.1%	0.1%	0.1%	0.09%	0.09%	0.1%	0.07%	0.09%	0.12%	0.12%
Operating CF Growth %	0.05%	-0.01%	0.05%	0%	-0.01%	0.08%	-0.17%	0.42%	0.52%	0.04%
Net Income	785.17M	633M	623M	823M	895M	755M	1.11B	1.61B	1.9B	1.99B
Depreciation & Amortization	227.97M	249M	264M	257M	229M	182M	187M	205M	214M	237M
Stock-Based Compensation	46.86M	35.73M	32.66M	47M	40M	46M	42M	48M	62M	62M
Deferred Taxes	4.08M	-6M	-5M	7M	4M	-5M	27M	8M	-9M	-8M
Other Non-Cash Items	18.81M	70M	72M	157M	129M	315M	62M	75M	116M	107M
Working Capital Changes	-46.78M	42M	70M	-234M	-255M	-170M	-495M	-616M	-255M	-276M
Change in Receivables	-960K	-45.6M	-103.13M	-79M	-42M	-121M	-324M	-436M	-98M	-110M
Change in Inventory	-36.07M	-4.4M	-4.92M	-129M	-106M	-158M	-152M	-412M	-16M	-77M
Change in Payables	22.08M	72.88M	72.33M	-51M	32M	80M	54M	225M	-65M	20M
Cash from Investing+	-835.26M	-262.26M	-146.08M	-166M	-202M	-179M	-226M	-263M	-422M	-520M
Capital Expenditures	-373.87M	-284.25M	-237.28M	-239M	-221M	-197M	-255M	-256M	-445M	-541M
CapEx % of Revenue	0.04%	0.03%	0.02%	0.02%	0.02%	0.02%	0.02%	0.02%	0.03%	0.03%
Acquisitions	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Investments	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Other Investing	15.32M	56M	126M	-13M	17M	-2M	29M	-7M	23M	21M
Cash from Financing+	-144.8M	-754.53M	-866.54M	-670M	-1.02B	-726M	-1.04B	-972M	-1.28B	-1.18B
Debt Issued (Net)	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Equity Issued (Net)	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Dividends Paid	-306.47M	-303M	-304M	-316M	-328M	-338M	-357M	-370M	-392M	-421M
Share Repurchases	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Other Financing	42.23M	25M	19M	172M	42M	52M	21M	0	-6M	-22M
Net Change in Cash	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Free Cash Flow+	637.79M	718.73M	819.27M	818M	821M	926M	682M	1.08B	1.59B	1.57B
FCF Margin %	0.06%	0.07%	0.08%	0.07%	0.07%	0.08%	0.05%	0.07%	0.1%	0.09%
FCF Growth %	0.11%	0.13%	0.14%	-0%	0%	0.13%	-0.26%	0.58%	0.47%	-0.01%
FCF per Share	9.70	11.81	14.13	14.47	14.95	17.24	13.07	21.08	31.66	32.04
FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income)	1.32x	1.66x	1.80x	1.35x	1.23x	1.62x	0.90x	0.86x	1.11x	1.11x
Interest Paid	31.59M	63M	78M	86M	84M	94M	87M	91M	109M	111M
Taxes Paid	442.49M	360M	335M	229M	322M	180M	377M	479M	615M	606M

Key Ratios

Metric	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
Return on Equity (ROE)	27.28%	28.46%	31.37%	39.89%	40.89%	33.47%	49.05%	63.21%	59.23%	53.44%
Return on Invested Capital (ROIC)	25.69%	21.18%	20.37%	22.8%	24.62%	19.01%	26.35%	33.92%	36.13%	34.75%
Gross Margin	42.43%	40.59%	39.31%	38.75%	38.28%	35.92%	36.25%	38.41%	39.42%	38.96%
Net Margin	7.71%	5.98%	5.62%	6.97%	7.39%	5.89%	8.01%	10.16%	11.1%	11.12%
Debt / Equity	0.82x	1.18x	1.28x	1.06x	1.08x	1.25x	1.28x	0.99x	0.80x	0.86x
Interest Coverage	38.73x	14.73x	11.78x	13.16x	15.97x	10.96x	17.78x	23.82x	27.58x	34.25x
FCF Conversion	1.32x	1.66x	1.80x	1.35x	1.23x	1.62x	0.90x	0.86x	1.11x	1.11x
Revenue Growth	0.08%	1.64%	2.84%	7.64%	2.36%	2.71%	10.38%	16.94%	8.21%	4.19%

Revenue by Segment

	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
High-Touch Solutions (N.A.)	-	-	-	-	-	-	10.19B	12.18B	13.27B	13.72B
High-Touch Solutions (N.A.) Growth	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	19.60%	8.91%	3.41%
Endless Assortment	-	-	-	-	-	-	2.58B	2.79B	2.92B	3.13B
Endless Assortment Growth	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	8.19%	4.63%	7.48%
Other Businesses	1.4B	1.88B	2.12B	2.44B	2.65B	-	-	-	-	-
Other Businesses Growth	-	34.17%	12.49%	15.18%	8.62%	-	-	-	-	-

Revenue by Geography

	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
UNITED STATES	7.87B	7.83B	7.95B	8.61B	8.87B	9.2B	10.24B	12.32B	13.39B	13.95B
UNITED STATES Growth	-	-0.41%	1.45%	8.36%	2.93%	3.78%	11.26%	20.41%	8.63%	4.17%
JAPAN	-	-	-	-	-	-	1.71B	1.72B	1.8B	1.89B
JAPAN Growth	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	0.82%	4.54%	5.34%
Other Foreign Countries	1.21B	1.56B	1.72B	1.95B	2.08B	2.1B	521M	563M	646M	667M
Other Foreign Countries Growth	-	29.22%	9.75%	13.67%	6.77%	1.01%	-75.23%	8.06%	14.74%	3.25%
CANADA	897.43M	739.69M	761.07M	658M	539M	494M	560M	621M	646M	661M
CANADA Growth	-	-17.58%	2.89%	-13.54%	-18.09%	-8.35%	13.36%	10.89%	4.03%	2.32%

Frequently Asked Questions

Valuation & Price

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW) has a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 27.5x. This suggests investors expect higher future growth.

Growth & Financials

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW) reported $17.75B in revenue for fiscal year 2024. This represents a 120% increase from $8.08B in 2011.

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW) grew revenue by 4.2% over the past year. Growth has been modest.

Yes, W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW) is profitable, generating $1.73B in net income for fiscal year 2024 (11.1% net margin).

Dividend & Returns

Yes, W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW) pays a dividend with a yield of 0.81%. This makes it attractive for income-focused investors.

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW) has a return on equity (ROE) of 53.4%. This is excellent, indicating efficient use of shareholder capital.

W.W. Grainger, Inc. (GWW) generated $1.23B in free cash flow for fiscal year 2024. Positive FCF indicates the company can fund dividends, buybacks, or reinvestment.

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