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 sent to investors on Wednesday.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $375.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $344.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $395.29.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of SHW opened at $357.97 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $90.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.18. Sherwin-Williams has a twelve month low of $240.00 and a twelve month high of $392.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97. The company has a 50 day moving average of $372.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $336.38.

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

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.715 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is presently 28.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Allen J. Mistysyn sold 14,520 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $366.83, for a total transaction of $5,326,371.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 63,520 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,301,041.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sherwin-Williams

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SHW. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 47.5% in the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 87 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 102.3% in the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 89 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. 77.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.