Investors Purchase High Volume of Put Options on Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW)

The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) saw some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors bought 4,821 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 449% compared to the typical volume of 878 put options.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of Sherwin-Williams stock traded down $4.98 on Tuesday, reaching $337.27. 429,185 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,609,560. The company has a market capitalization of $84.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.97, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. Sherwin-Williams has a one year low of $282.09 and a one year high of $400.42. The company has a 50-day moving average of $353.95 and a 200 day moving average of $365.49.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) 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. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Sherwin-Williams will post 12 earnings per share for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. 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 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SHW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 28th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $380.00 price objective (down previously from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $438.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $321.00 to $420.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Sherwin-Williams presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $401.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.30, for a total transaction of $1,008,479.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,933,009.50. The trade was a 34.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sherwin-Williams

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 1.0% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,047,174 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $399,675,000 after purchasing an additional 10,709 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,647 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,010,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,239 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,000,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Atlanta Consulting Group Advisors LLC increased its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 8.8% in the third quarter. Atlanta Consulting Group Advisors LLC now owns 1,017 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $388,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Claro Advisors LLC increased its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 5.0% in the third quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 3,105 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,185,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.67% 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.