The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Shares Sold by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC reduced its holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,428,978 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 104,179 shares during the quarter. Sherwin-Williams accounts for 0.7% of Clearbridge Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned about 0.96% of Sherwin-Williams worth $825,682,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SHW. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,047,174 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $399,675,000 after purchasing an additional 10,709 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 7,428 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,835,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the third quarter worth $234,000. Fiduciary Trust Co lifted its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 5,978 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,282,000 after acquiring an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 14.0% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 8,980 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,427,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the 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 directly owns 5,365 shares in the company, valued at $1,933,009.50. This represents a 34.28 % 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 currently owned by company insiders.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

Sherwin-Williams stock opened at $339.77 on Friday. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 1 year low of $282.09 and a 1 year high of $400.42. The company’s 50-day moving average is $353.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $363.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The company has a market cap of $85.46 billion, a PE ratio of 32.21, a PEG 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, beating 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 period last year, the business earned $1.81 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.79 dividend. 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. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is 29.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Zelman & Associates raised Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective (down from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $438.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $401.13.

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.