The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $397.00.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SHW. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $385.00 to $355.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $423.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $405.00 to $385.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 5,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,933,009.50. This trade represents a 34.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sherwin-Williams

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SHW. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Perkins Coie Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Synergy Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 583.3% in the 1st quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC now owns 82 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. 77.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SHW opened at $363.22 on Wednesday. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $341.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $355.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.43, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.25. Sherwin-Williams has a one year low of $282.09 and a one year high of $400.42.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $5.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.42 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 74.50%. Sherwin-Williams’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.17 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Sherwin-Williams will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.87%. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.87%.

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.