The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Shares Purchased by Motley Fool Asset Management LLC

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC raised its position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 14.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,740 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 1,695 shares during the period. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $4,671,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 1.0% in 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 last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 14.0% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 8,980 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,427,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 18.5% in the third quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 1,718 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $656,000 after buying an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 127.3% during the third quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 4,432 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,691,000 after acquiring an additional 2,482 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Investment Management Corp of Ontario grew its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 41.3% during the 3rd quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 8,891 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,393,000 after acquiring an additional 2,600 shares in the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 5,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,933,009.50. This represents a 34.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SHW. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $438.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Berenberg Bank upgraded Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $321.00 to $420.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $400.19.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:SHW opened at $353.72 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $353.21 and its two-hundred day moving average is $363.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 1 year low of $282.09 and a 1 year high of $400.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.96 billion, a PE ratio of 33.53, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the firm posted $1.81 EPS. Analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.89%. This is a boost from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is presently 29.95%.

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.