AGF Management Ltd. Raises Stock Holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

AGF Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 157,516 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,429 shares during the quarter. AGF Management Ltd.’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $53,544,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SHW. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 1,515 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $515,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp grew its position in Sherwin-Williams by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 253,292 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $86,102,000 after buying an additional 5,486 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its position in Sherwin-Williams by 35.8% during the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 5,668 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,927,000 after acquiring an additional 1,495 shares during the last quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 1,412 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $480,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 13,296 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $4,520,000 after purchasing an additional 1,402 shares during the period. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Down 1.5 %

NYSE:SHW opened at $358.11 on Tuesday. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $353.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $365.99. The company has a market cap of $90.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23. 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 announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 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 period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.81 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. This is a positive change from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price target on Sherwin-Williams in a report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $438.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $380.00 price target (down previously from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 28th. One research 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $401.13.

Insider Activity at Sherwin-Williams

In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the 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 $1,933,009.50. This represents a 34.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

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.