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W.W. Grainger (GWW): analysis traps
Where its figures could mislead a reader, and what to check before taking them at face value · Data: Q3 2026, to Sep 30, 2026, filed Nov 4, 2026; rules v1.1
W.W. Grainger (GWW): 0 rules of 10 triggered on the filings to Sep 30, 2026. 2 to review; 1 with insufficient data; 2 not applicable. Each is a question to verify, with the normal explanation that would produce the same figures.
Check these first
Low P/E at a cyclical peak = undervalued To review · confidence medium
Net income of $2.2B is at a high against a median of $1.5B over eight years; at 31.6× the market is not pricing it as cheap, but a multiple on this year's profit still understates the mid-cycle one (44.2×).
A precise DCF value = the true value To review · confidence high
The DCF's point value is 870.93 a share (price 1,451.40); 78% of it is the terminal value, a number about years no one has seen. Moving revenue growth (each year) by ±5 pts alone takes it from 698.18 to 1,077.41; across every method the research ran the range is 92 to 1,870. The value is a range; the decimals are not information.
Innocent reading: A stable, mature business with a narrow range of outcomes, where the point value is a fair summary.
Every rule
A01 FCF growth = the business improved Not triggered confidence high
Free cash flow did not rise ($1.6B → $1.3B): the trap does not arise.
The figures and how they are read
| Fiscal year before | FY2024 |
| Fiscal year | FY2025 |
| Operating cash flow, year before | $2.1B |
| Operating cash flow | $2.0B |
| Capex, year before | $541M |
| Capex | $684M |
| Free cash flow, year before | $1.6B |
| Free cash flow | $1.3B |
| Change in FCF | −$239M |
| Change in capex | $143M |
| Working capital: change in its cash contribution | −$147M |
FCF = operating cash flow − cash capex; ΔFCF = ΔOCF − ΔCapEx; the working-capital part is the change in the cash-bridge items (receivables, inventory, payables, accruals), with the sign of the cash flow statement
Source: FY2025 (cash flow statement, fiscal year) · FY2024 (cash flow statement, fiscal year before)
A07 Stock compensation added back = no economic cost Not triggered confidence high
Stock compensation is 0.4% of revenue: small enough that adding it back changes little.
The figures and how they are read
| Fiscal year | FY2025 |
| Stock compensation | $64M |
| Revenue | $17.9B |
| SBC / revenue | +0.4% |
| Buybacks | $1.0B |
| Buybacks / SBC | 16.3 |
| Diluted shares, year before | 49.0M shares |
| Diluted shares | 48.0M shares |
| Diluted shares: change | -2.0% |
SBC / revenue from the cash flow statement's add-back; the diluted weighted share count year over year; buybacks from the financing section
Source: FY2025 (stock compensation, buybacks and the diluted share count, fiscal year)
B02 Receivables growing = future cash is certain Not triggered confidence medium
Receivables grew 19% against revenue 11% in Q3 2026; DSO 51 against a median of 48: collections are keeping pace with sales.
The figures and how they are read
| Quarter | Q3 2026 |
| Revenue, year over year | +11.2% |
| Receivables, year over year | +19.5% |
| Quarter before | Q2 2026 |
| Revenue y/y, quarter before | +10.2% |
| Receivables y/y, quarter before | +14.3% |
| Days sales outstanding | 50.6 |
| DSO, median of eight quarters | 48.4 |
| Receivables | $2.9B |
| Revenue | $5.2B |
receivables and revenue against the same quarter a year earlier; DSO = receivables / quarterly revenue × days, against the median of the eight quarters before
Source: Q3 2026 (receivables and revenue) · Q3 2025 (the same quarter a year earlier)
B08 Adjusted profit = economic profit Insufficient data
no reconciliation table read from the releases yet and fewer than three quarters with both an adjusted and a GAAP EPS
C02 Low net debt = no refinancing risk Not triggered confidence medium
$452M comes due within a year, 5.5× covered by cash and investments of $768M plus $1.7B of free cash flow.
The figures and how they are read
| Cash and investments | $768M |
| Debt | $2.9B |
| Net debt | $2.1B |
| Due within a year | $452M |
| Read from | the current portion of debt on the balance sheet |
| Free cash flow, twelve months | $1.7B |
| Cash plus free cash flow | $2.5B |
| Coverage of what is due | 5.5 |
| Due in the second year | — |
| Balance sheet date | 2026-09-30 |
due within a year from the maturity table (else the current portion of debt), against cash and investments plus free cash flow over the last twelve months (zero if negative); no credit lines assumed
Source: 2026-09-30 (debt maturities, cash and investments)
D03 EPS growth = profit growth Not triggered confidence high
EPS rose 103% and net income rose 100% in Q3 2026; the share count fell 1.7%: EPS growth follows profit growth.
The figures and how they are read
| Quarter | Q3 2026 |
| Quarter before | Q3 2025 |
| EPS, year before | $6.14 |
| EPS | $12.46 |
| Net income, year before | $294M |
| Net income | $587M |
| Diluted shares, year before | 47.9M shares |
| Diluted shares | 47.1M shares |
| EPS growth | +103.0% |
| Net income growth | +99.7% |
| Diluted shares: change | -1.7% |
| eps from profit | $6.12 |
| eps from share count | $0.21 |
EPS and net income against the same quarter a year earlier; the EPS bridge attributes the change to profit first, then to the share count (the order is fixed and disclosed)
Source: Q3 2026 (net income, diluted shares, EPS) · Q3 2025 (the same quarter a year earlier)
E02 Low P/E at a cyclical peak = undervalued To review confidence medium
Net income of $2.2B is at a high against a median of $1.5B over eight years; at 31.6× the market is not pricing it as cheap, but a multiple on this year's profit still understates the mid-cycle one (44.2×).
The figures and how they are read
| market value | $68.4B |
| net income ttm | $2.2B |
| pe ttm | 31.60 |
| net income median fy | $1.5B |
| pe mid cycle | 44.20 |
| net income peak fy | $1.9B |
| years | FY2018 / 782.0; FY2019 / 849.0; FY2020 / 695.0; FY2021 / 1043.0; FY2022 / 1547.0; FY2023 / 1829.0; FY2024 / 1909.0; FY2025 / 1706.0 |
| down years in window | 2 |
P/E on the trailing twelve months' net income against the P/E on the median net income of the last eight fiscal years (a mid-cycle stand-in); 'at a peak' = this year's profit at or above 90% of the best year and at least 1.3× the median
Source: Q3 2026 (net income, trailing twelve months)
What would show the trap does not apply
- Profit holds at this level through the next two years (the eight-year peak was a new base, not a top)
- The industry's capacity and prices stay where they are rather than reverting
Look again: next filing.
E07 A precise DCF value = the true value To review confidence high
The DCF's point value is 870.93 a share (price 1,451.40); 78% of it is the terminal value, a number about years no one has seen. Moving revenue growth (each year) by ±5 pts alone takes it from 698.18 to 1,077.41; across every method the research ran the range is 92 to 1,870. The value is a range; the decimals are not information.
The figures and how they are read
| dcf value | 870.93 |
| price | 1,451.40 |
| terminal value share | +77.7% |
| swing by input | Revenue growth (each year) / ±5 pts / 698.18 / 1077.41; Operating margin / ±3 pts / 689.22 / 1052.65; WACC / ±1 pt / 733.4 / 1064.95; Tax rate / ±5 pts / 807.68 / 934.19 |
| range all methods | 91.74; 1870.16 |
the DCF's point value against the share of it that is the terminal value and the value at each input moved by one step (growth ±5 pts, WACC ±1 pt, margin ±3 pts …); the range across every method the research ran
Source: 2026-11-08 (valuation research)
What would explain it innocently
- A stable, mature business with a narrow range of outcomes, where the point value is a fair summary
- The inputs that matter most are themselves well known (a regulated return, a long contract)
What to look for in the filing
- Which input you believe differs from the research's and why
- What the price implies for growth (the reverse DCF on the fair-value page)
What would show the trap does not apply
- The DCF's value is robust to the terminal growth and discount rate (the range's low end is still above the price)
- The company's cash flows over the next three years track the DCF's early years
Look again: next filing.
J06 A bank's low P/E and high profit = safe Not applicable
not a bank
J08 A REIT's low net income = the dividend is unsafe Not applicable
not a REIT
What the statuses mean
Triggered: the filings show the pattern; read the normal explanations and the missing evidence before concluding anything. To review: one quarter or a weak signal; a reader's judgement, not a pattern. Not triggered: the pattern is absent on these figures. Insufficient data: the filings read so far do not hold what the rule needs; this is not a clean bill. Not applicable: the rule is not meant for this kind of company (a bank's working capital, a loss-making quarter's EPS growth). Out of date: the latest filing is more than fifteen months old.
Severity is what the pattern could mean for cash, value or solvency; confidence is how reliable the inputs and the reading are. The two are kept apart.
Record a view
A reader's judgement, grounds, what would change it and the next review; kept in the browser (needs JavaScript).
Every rule and the companies it triggers on → W.W. Grainger: cash flow → Earnings quality score →
Each rule reads the company's own filings by a fixed formula and says what would explain the same figures innocently. A triggered rule is a question to verify, not a finding of manipulation, and not a view on the stock. Missing data is shown as missing, never as clear. Not investment advice.