California Public Employees Retirement System Purchases 10,144 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company $SHW

California Public Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 436,856 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 10,144 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System owned about 0.18% of Sherwin-Williams worth $151,266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,637,705 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $7,838,532,000 after acquiring an additional 309,153 shares during the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 9.9% in the second quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 3,887,808 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,334,918,000 after purchasing an additional 351,453 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the second quarter valued at $1,296,565,000. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 0.3% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,432,977 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,188,698,000 after purchasing an additional 11,560 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 0.4% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,052,021 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,056,811,000 after purchasing an additional 12,715 shares during the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Sherwin-Williams stock opened at $319.62 on Monday. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 12-month low of $308.84 and a 12-month high of $379.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $352.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $344.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.06 billion, a PE ratio of 31.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.25.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.07. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 10.90% and a return on equity of 65.26%. The company had revenue of $5.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.80 per share. This is a positive change from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is currently 31.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on SHW shares. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Monday, January 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $390.00 price target on Sherwin-Williams and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $380.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $400.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $388.21.

Insider Activity at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,976 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.50, for a total transaction of $1,069,872.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 5,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,928,717.50. This trade represents a 35.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Bryan J. Young sold 2,513 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $364.47, for a total value of $915,913.11. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,661,101.15. The trade was a 20.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Sherwin-Williams Profile

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE: SHW) is a global manufacturer and distributor of paints, coatings and related products. Founded in 1866 and headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company supplies a broad range of coatings for residential, commercial and industrial applications. Its product offering includes architectural paints and stains, industrial and protective coatings, automotive finishes, and a variety of sundry products such as primers, sealants and specialty treatments used by professionals and consumers.

The company sells through multiple channels, including a large network of company-operated retail paint stores that serve professional contractors and do-it-yourself consumers, as well as through distributors and mass retailers.