Shakespeare Wealth Management LLC Sells 157 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Shakespeare Wealth Management LLC lowered its position in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 8.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,654 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 157 shares during the quarter. Shakespeare Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $562,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC raised its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 41.7% in the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 77.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Down 2.6 %

SHW opened at $331.91 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $352.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $362.71. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52 week low of $282.09 and a 52 week high of $400.42. The stock has a market cap of $83.48 billion, a PE ratio of 31.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.02. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 74.50% and a net margin of 11.61%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.81 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This is a boost from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.30, for a total value of $1,008,479.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,933,009.50. The trade was a 34.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on SHW shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $438.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Zelman & Associates raised shares of Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $398.94.

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.