Motley Fool Asset Management LLC Grows Stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 14.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,740 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,695 shares during the quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $4,671,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 41.7% during the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on SHW shares. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $321.00 to $420.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $380.00 target price (down from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Monday, March 10th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price target on Sherwin-Williams in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $423.00 price objective (up from $418.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $400.19.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.30, for a total value of $1,008,479.70. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,933,009.50. This represents a 34.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

Shares of SHW opened at $353.72 on Thursday. 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 Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52-week low of $282.09 and a 52-week high of $400.42. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $353.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $363.39. The company has a market capitalization of $88.96 billion, a PE ratio of 33.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 last year, the company earned $1.81 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

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

Sherwin-Williams 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.