Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Lowers Holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,008 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 2,051 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $7,762,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Conning Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.9% during the second quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 1,606 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $479,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Oxbow Advisors LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 690 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $206,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 1,403 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $419,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Optas LLC lifted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Optas LLC now owns 2,424 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $723,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 2.9% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,173 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $350,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SHW opened at $371.60 on Thursday. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52 week low of $232.06 and a 52 week high of $372.34. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $343.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $326.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. The firm has a market cap of $94.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.17.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $6.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.33 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 10.92% and a return on equity of 75.58%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.29 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 11.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $0.715 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on SHW shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $365.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 30th. Redburn Atlantic raised Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $315.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $392.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $400.00 target price (up previously from $386.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $362.68.

Insider Transactions at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, CFO Allen J. Mistysyn sold 14,520 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $366.83, for a total transaction of $5,326,371.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 63,520 shares in the company, valued at $23,301,041.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

About Sherwin-Williams

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.