Graypoint LLC Buys 305 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Graypoint LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 38.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,102 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the quarter. Graypoint LLC’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $344,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SHW. Roundview Capital LLC boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 8.1% during the first quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 8,065 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,013,000 after purchasing an additional 607 shares during the period. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 189.1% during the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 10,409 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,598,000 after purchasing an additional 6,808 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 26.5% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 118,763 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $29,956,000 after purchasing an additional 24,884 shares during the period. Prudential PLC acquired a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,231,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 11,387 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,842,000 after buying an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

NYSE:SHW opened at $318.25 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $328.49 and a 200 day moving average of $296.04. The company has a market capitalization of $80.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.41, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 1.15. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 1-year low of $221.76 and a 1-year high of $348.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $5.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.23 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 74.72% and a net margin of 10.36%. Sherwin-Williams’s quarterly revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.89 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 11.44 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 8th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were given a $0.715 dividend. This is an increase from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is presently 30.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Justin T. Binns sold 1,563 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.87, for a total value of $529,653.81. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 14,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,935,302.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Sherwin-Williams news, SVP Gregory P. Sofish sold 1,830 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.70, for a total value of $586,881.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,029,710.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Justin T. Binns sold 1,563 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.87, for a total value of $529,653.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 14,564 shares in the company, valued at $4,935,302.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 32,050 shares of company stock worth $10,340,237 in the last quarter. 0.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SHW. Mizuho cut their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $352.00 to $340.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 26th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Barclays increased their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $285.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $346.00 to $341.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $360.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $326.50.

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.