StockNews.com Downgrades Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) to Hold

StockNews.com cut shares of Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Thursday.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on SHW. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $455.00 to $446.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $375.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $396.47.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Sherwin-Williams stock opened at $393.96 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $378.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $346.30. Sherwin-Williams has a one year low of $272.34 and a one year high of $400.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market cap of $99.22 billion, a PE ratio of 39.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.17.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.37 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.56 by ($0.19). Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 74.45% and a net margin of 11.09%. The company had revenue of $6.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.20 EPS. Sherwin-Williams’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Sherwin-Williams will post 11.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.715 per share. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is presently 28.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Gregory P. Sofish sold 2,565 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.63, for a total value of $971,185.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,396,349.27. This trade represents a 28.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Mary L. Garceau sold 15,770 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $397.92, for a total value of $6,275,198.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 29,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,621,253.60. This trade represents a 35.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 1,818 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $694,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Tamar Securities LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Tamar Securities LLC now owns 48,753 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $18,608,000 after buying an additional 1,604 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,636 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $787,000 after buying an additional 193 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 117,055 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,676,000 after buying an additional 4,681 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transcend Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 24.1% in the 2nd quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,805 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,329,000 after buying an additional 1,514 shares in the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Company Profile

The Sherwin-Williams Company engages in the development, manufacture, distribution, and sale of paints, coating, and related products to professional, industrial, commercial, and retail customers. It operates through three segments: Paint Stores Group, Consumer Brands Group, and Performance Coatings Group.