W W Grainger Inc (NYSE:GWW) stock was on the rise Thursday following the release of its earnings report for the first quarter of 2018.

Earnings per share reported by W W Grainger Inc for the first quarter of the year was $4.18. This is a huge jump from its earnings per share of $2.88 reported in the first quarter of 2017. It is also a boon to GWW stock by coming in well above Wall Street’s earnings per share estimate of $3.42 for the quarter.

During the first quarter of 2018, W W Grainger Inc reported net income of $240.79 million. The industrial supply company’s net income from the same period of the year prior was $182.85 million.

Operating income reported by W W Grainger Inc for the first quarter of the year was $334.83 million. This is an increase over the company’s operating income of $292.50 million that was reported in the same quarter of the previous year.

W W Grainger Inc’s earnings report for the first quarter of 2018 also includes revenue of $2.77 billion. This is better than its revenue of $2.54 billion that was reported in the first quarter of the previous year. It is also good news for GWW stock by beating out analysts’ revenue estimate of $2.71 billion for the period.

The most recent earnings report from W W Grainger Inc also includes an update to its outlook for 2018. The company is now expecting earnings per share for the year to range from $14.30 to $15.30. Wall Street is looking for earnings per share of $13.82 for the year.

GWW stock was up 4% as of Thursday afternoon.

As of this writing, William White did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.