GWW US S&P 500Russell 1000 Earnings call · transcribed from the recording
W. W. Grainger (GWW) · Q3 2026 results and valuation
Share price: $1486.53 · 2026-11-11
Results Q3 2026 vs Q2 2026 · previous quarter · published 4 Nov 2026 and 4 Aug 2026
Net income down 2.2% on the previous quarter, guidance raised. Management sounded upbeat, in its script and in answers to analysts.
Only a basic analysis is available for this company at the moment.
1 · Numbers
−2.2%
Net income vs Q2 2026
Guidance raised
Net income 587.0M vs 600.0M
Revenue +3.2%
2 · How management spoke
Upbeat
More upbeat than 75% of company calls
Answers to analysts: upbeat, in line with the script.
Last call it was different: the answers were less upbeat than the script.
3 · What stood out
Guidance ↑
With the continued momentum W. W. Grainger is seeing across the business, it is increasing its 2026 earnings outlook and remain on track to deliver…
Valuation
Is W. W. Grainger undervalued?
Reverse DCF. Free cash flow from the last full fiscal year (2025-12-31), grown for 10 years, discounted back, plus a terminal value. “Implied growth” is the rate the current price assumes.
At 5.6% growth a year (3-year revenue growth), the model's fair value is $444.96 a share — the stock trades 234% above it. Today's price assumes 21.3% growth a year.
Current price
$1486.53
close of 2026-11-11
Market implies growth of iThe yearly free-cash-flow growth, for the next 10 years, that today’s share price already assumes. If you believe the company grows faster than this, the stock is cheap under this model; slower, and it is expensive.
+21.3% for 10 yrs
Fair value / share
$444.96
Buy below
$333.72
Price vs fair value
Overvalued >200%
Price vs buy-below price
Overvalued >200%
Read between the lines
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Key theme
Operating margin was 16.1%, up 90 basis points year over year as gross margin flow through and leverage in both segments…
Source quote
“Operating margin was 16.1%, up 90 basis points year over year as gross margin flow through and leverage in both segments... The gross margin for the quarter finished at 38.8 percent, up 20 basis points versus the prior year period as expansion and endless assortment was partly offset by slight compression in the high-touch solution segment. Both gross margin and operating margin also benefited from our prior year exit of the UK market.”
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Guidance
Despite the continued freight pressure, W. W. Grainger still expects a larger-than-normal sequential improvement in gross margins in the fourth quarter as it benefits from heightened supplier rebates due to its strong top-line...
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Figure
Results were strong for the quarter, and W. W. Grainger delivered diluted EPS of $12.54, which was up over 22% versus the prior year period.
Tone
How upbeat the language was, compared with other companiesiTone counts positive minus negative finance words, adjusted for length. Executives mostly speak positively, so the labels compare each call with every company's latest call: “typical” is the middle third, “very upbeat” the top tenth, “cautious” the bottom tenth.. Dot: Q3 2026. Ring: Q2 2026.
Script and answers carried a similar tone, so the script's message held up under questioning.
Sentences that drove the tone
“This led to strong growth and profitability in both the high-touch solutions and endless assortment segments.”
“We delivered another quarter of strong growth and profitability, underpinned by execution across both segments and buoyed by continued demand strength in the underlying MRO market.”
“As DG mentioned at the beginning of the call, we are increasing our full year 2026 earnings outlook to reflect our third quarter strength and the continued momentum we are...”
Full figures
USD · SEC EDGAR XBRL (10-Q, period end 2026-09-30)
| Metric | Q3 2026period end 2026-09-30 | Q2 2026period end 2026-06-30 | Change | Q3 2025 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 5.18B | 5.02B | +3.2% | 4.66B | +11.3% |
| Gross profit | 2.01B | 1.98B | +1.4% | 1.80B | +11.8% |
| Operating income | 828.0M | 807.0M | +2.6% | 511.0M | +62.0% |
| Net income | 587.0M | 600.0M | −2.2% | 294.0M | +99.7% |
| EPS | 12.42 | 12.01 | +3.4% | 6.12 | +102.9% |
| P/E today 31.7 | 27.4 | 34.7 | −7.3 | 26.7 | +0.7 |
Topics
Most discussed now
- W. W. Grainger has also included organic revenue adjustments in the presentation, which normalized sales growth to reflect its exit from…
- W. W. Grainger's team remains focused on simplifying its customers' buying journey and providing value inside customer operations through…
- W. W. Grainger continued to see an improving demand environment and delivered growth across all major end markets.
- Results were driven by double-digit volume growth and healthy price contribution to revenue.
- I'm confident W. W. Grainger is focused on the right things and are making the investments necessary to help its customers solve...
Faded since Q2 2026
- Dropped If you look at it on a full year basis, the tariff refunds account for, call it, 23 basis points...
- Fading On Canada specifically, W. W. Grainger has seen tremendous improvement over the past several years as it seems to stay focused on...
- Fading W. W. Grainger is also seeing solid growth from its national accounts in both the U.S.
- Fading Despite ongoing uncertainty, sales remain strong in both the High-Touch and Endless Assortment segments, and core operating profitability…
Latest announcements
Official filings, newest first. Summaries are generated from each filing and its attachment; every figure is checked against the source.
- Results of operations · SEC 8-K
- Results of operations · SEC 8-K
W.W. Grainger, Inc. reported second-quarter sales of $5.0 billion, up 10.3% year-over-year, and diluted earnings per share of $12.01, up 20.5% compared to the second quarter of 2025.
- Director or officer change · SEC 8-K
Deidra C. Merriwether resigned as Chief Financial Officer effective September 4, 2026, and Laurie R. Thomson was appointed as interim Chief Financial Officer with a salary increase from $455,271 to $500,000.
- Results of operations · SEC 8-K
W.W. Grainger reported first-quarter sales of $4.7 billion, up 10.1% year-over-year, and diluted earnings per share of $11.65, up 18.2% compared to the first quarter of 2025.
- Shareholder vote results · SEC 8-K · routine
- Results of operations · SEC 8-K
W.W. Grainger, Inc. reported fourth-quarter sales of $4.4 billion, up 4.5% year over year, and full-year sales of $17.9 billion, up 4.5% compared to the previous year.
- Articles or bylaws amended · SEC 8-K · routine
- Results of operations · SEC 8-K
W.W. Grainger, Inc. reported sales of $4.7 billion, up 6.1% year over year, and adjusted diluted EPS of $10.21, up 3.4% compared to the third quarter of 2024.