BMO Capital analyst R. Scott Graham raised his price target on Grainger to $242 following his meetings with the management at the company's eCommerice office. Graham says the enhancements that he witnessed improve the user experience, adding that the visit also supported the managements assertion of competitive advantage in the MRO market. The analyst kept his Market Perform rating on Grainger on valuation along with concerns that market pressures will restrain its earnings growth.

W.W. Grainger's board of directors approved a quarterly cash dividend of $2.05 per share, an increase of 10% from the most recent company dividend of $1.86 per share. The dividend is payable on June 1, to shareholders of record on May 13. In addition, the board approved the repurchase of up to 5M shares of the company's outstanding common stock, replacing the company's existing repurchase authorization. The new repurchase authorization has no expiration date. "2024 is on track to be our 53rd consecutive year of increased dividends, upholding Grainger's long-standing commitment to our shareholders. This increase, together with our updated share repurchase authorization, reinforces our ability to continue investing in the business while also returning excess cash to shareholders," said D.G. Macpherson, Grainger CEO.