The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Shares Sold by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. cut its stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 56,686 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 656 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $19,269,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 18.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,482,662 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,474,238,000 after acquiring an additional 999,164 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,733,131 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,799,196,000 after buying an additional 58,463 shares during the period. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd boosted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd now owns 2,171,802 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $738,261,000 after buying an additional 114,591 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 12.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,724,746 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $586,293,000 after buying an additional 187,724 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,472,073 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $500,402,000 after purchasing an additional 50,983 shares in the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

SHW opened at $342.73 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $86.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.49, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $353.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $365.49. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a twelve month low of $282.09 and a twelve month high of $400.42.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 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 quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current 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 $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. This is a positive change from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is presently 29.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Friday, January 31st. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $321.00 to $420.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. 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, Sherwin-Williams currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $401.13.

Insider Transactions at Sherwin-Williams

In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.60% 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.