Korea Investment CORP Reduces Stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Korea Investment CORP decreased its holdings in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 176,573 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 4,849 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $60,022,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 1,000.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 99 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. 77.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sherwin-Williams Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of SHW stock opened at $345.45 on Friday. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a fifty-two week low of $282.09 and a fifty-two week high of $400.42. 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 has a fifty day simple moving average of $353.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $364.08. The stock has a market cap of $86.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.81 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.91%. This is a positive change from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is 29.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Zelman & Associates raised Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 28th. Finally, Citigroup restated a “buy” rating and issued a $423.00 price objective (up previously from $418.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $401.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.30, for a total transaction of $1,008,479.70. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,933,009.50. This represents a 34.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.