Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

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

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the company. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $430.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $396.47.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

Shares of Sherwin-Williams stock opened at $397.40 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $100.09 billion, a PE ratio of 39.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 1.17. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $378.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $347.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97. Sherwin-Williams has a 12 month low of $272.34 and a 12 month high of $400.42.

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

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.715 dividend. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, SVP Mary L. Garceau sold 15,770 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were 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 represents a 35.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Gregory P. Sofish sold 2,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.63, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 28.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sherwin-Williams

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SHW. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 88.9% during the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 87 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 102.3% during the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 89 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.