The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation, ten have issued a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $401.13.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on SHW. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Zelman & Associates raised shares of Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $380.00 price objective (down from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Monday, March 10th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $423.00 target price (up previously from $418.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price target on Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Friday, January 31st.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of SHW opened at $349.35 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market cap of $87.87 billion, a PE ratio of 33.11, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23. Sherwin-Williams has a twelve month low of $282.09 and a twelve month high of $400.42. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $353.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $363.63.

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

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. This is an increase from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.95%.

Insider Activity at Sherwin-Williams

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 80.0% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 1,177 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $400,000 after acquiring an additional 523 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 52.6% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,680 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,271,000 after purchasing an additional 2,303 shares in the last quarter. Burney Co. raised its position in Sherwin-Williams by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Burney Co. now owns 17,272 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,871,000 after purchasing an additional 766 shares during the last quarter. Kerusso Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 75.9% in the 4th quarter. Kerusso Capital Management LLC now owns 10,290 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,498,000 after buying an additional 4,439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 117,055 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,676,000 after buying an additional 4,681 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

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.