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STOCK COMPARISON

MSC Industrial Direct Company vs WW Grainger: Fair Value & Quality

Both stocks run through our valuation models. Here is how MSC Industrial Direct Company (MSM) and WW Grainger (GWW) compare, as of Aug 10, 2026.

As of Aug 10, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees MSC Industrial Direct Company as the less overvalued of the two: MSC Industrial Direct Company trades at $123 versus a fair value of $74.19 (-40%), while WW Grainger trades at $1,278 versus $626 (-51%).
MSC Industrial Direct Company
MSM · USD · Industrials
-40%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$123
Fair Value$74.19
Quality68/100
WW Grainger
GWW · USD · Industrials
-51%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$1,278
Fair Value$626
Quality71/100

Head-to-head numbers

Green value = the better side for that row (for valuation multiples: lower = cheaper).

MSC Industrial Direct CompanyWW Grainger
Valuation
30.3×P/E (TTM)37.0×
1.78×P/S (TTM)3.53×
5.02×P/B15.69×
16.0×EV/EBITDA21.6×
2.56×PEG2.15×
2.8%Dividend yield0.7%
$3.48Dividend per share$9.04
Profitability
6%Net margin10%
10%Operating margin17%
16%Return on equity46%
9%Return on assets20%
Growth
8%Revenue growth (YoY)10%
0.7%Avg. growth/yr (3Y)5.6%
3.4%Avg. growth/yr (5Y)8.7%
Balance & size
0.12×Debt / equity0.57×
$7BMarket cap$65B
mixedGrowth qualityhealthy

WW Grainger leads: 6 to 8 metric wins.

Dash = not meaningfully computable, for example with negative equity.

Quality in detail

The quality score, broken down into the same factor families as on the stock page, 0 to 100 per family.

MSC Industrial Direct Companyof which business quality 67 · market factors 82 WW Graingerof which business quality 68 · market factors 70
ProfitabilityMargins and returns on capital today
68
89
Quality GrowthAre margins and returns improving?
31
44
CashflowEarnings quality: real cash, not paper profit
55
46
Fin. StrengthBalance sheet, leverage, solvency risk
72
72
InvestmentDisciplined investing over empire-building
98
55
Low VolatilityCalm price path (market factor)
75
69
MomentumPrice trend over the last 3–12 months (market factor)
81
66
52W MomentumDistance to the 52-week high (market factor)
90
76
Net IssuanceBuybacks instead of dilution
87
100

What the models say

The median fair value (base case) per model family, each in the currency of its trading venue. Green = above the current price, red = below.

MSC Industrial Direct Company

DCF Models$70.48
Earnings-Based$32.47
Dividend Discount$53.06
Multiples$72.98
Asset-Based$16.65
Growth DCF$68.56
Economic Profit$39.84
Growth Earnings$64.47

26 of 26 models see the stock below the current price.

WW Grainger

DCF Models$615
Earnings-Based$340
Dividend Discount$169
Multiples$703
Asset-Based$58.76
Growth DCF$540
Economic Profit$467
Growth Earnings$668

26 of 26 models see the stock below the current price.

Scenario ranges

From our cautious bear case to the optimistic bull case. The white tick is the current price: left of fair value means room to run.

MSC Industrial Direct Company
Bear $46.14Fair Value $74.19Bull $93.69
$123 = current price (white tick)
WW Grainger
Bear $368Fair Value $626Bull $949
$1,278 = current price (white tick)

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Ranked within their sector

Where each stock sits within its sector peer group. Band = middle 50% of peers, tick = median, dot = this stock.

MSC Industrial Direct Company · Industrials

Quality score68 · Top 25%
Fair value upside-40% · below median

WW Grainger · Industrials

Quality score71 · Top 25%
Fair value upside-51% · below median

Bottom line

As of Aug 10, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees MSC Industrial Direct Company as the less overvalued of the two: MSC Industrial Direct Company trades at $123 versus a fair value of $74.19 (-40%), while WW Grainger trades at $1,278 versus $626 (-51%).

WW Grainger has the higher quality score (71/100).

See the full analysis →

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A model-based valuation snapshot from 21 models. Values change with price and fundamentals; the date shown above applies.