Royal Bank of Canada Cuts Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) Price Target to $446.00

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) had its price objective lowered by Royal Bank of Canada from $455.00 to $446.00 in a report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on SHW. KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Monday, October 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $344.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $395.29.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SHW opened at $359.04 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $372.00 and its 200 day moving average is $335.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97. Sherwin-Williams has a 52 week low of $232.06 and a 52 week high of $392.57. The stock has a market cap of $91.03 billion, a PE ratio of 38.28, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.17.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.56 by ($0.19). Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 11.09% and a return on equity of 74.45%. The company 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 company earned $3.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Sherwin-Williams will post 11.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.715 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is currently 30.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In other news, CFO Allen J. Mistysyn sold 14,520 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sherwin-Williams

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 102.3% during the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 89 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 136.4% in the 2nd quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 104 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC increased its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 233.3% in the 2nd quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 110 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 87 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Anfield Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

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.