W.W. Grainger, Inc. GWW

W.W. Grainger has delivered very strong gains over the last five years, which puts a spotlight on whether the current US$1,255.69 share price is adequately supported by the cash the business can generate. For investors, the central issue now is how that market value lines up against the company’s long term cash flow potential. The stock has returned 232.2% over the past five years, which raises the question of whether Grainger’s cash flows can carry that kind of step up in valuation. The...

W.W. Grainger (GWW) has been drawing fresh attention after recent share price swings, with the stock down about 4% over the past month and roughly 7.7% over the past 3 months. Viewed over a longer stretch, W.W. Grainger’s recent share price softness, including the 30-day share price return of down 3.9% and 90-day share price return of down 7.7%, runs alongside a much stronger backdrop. The year-to-date share price return is 25.1% and the 1-year total shareholder return is 33.6%, pointing to...