The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Short Interest Update

The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,410,000 shares, a decrease of 21.8% from the September 15th total of 3,080,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,490,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.6 days. Approximately 1.0% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:SHW traded up $4.39 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $388.55. The company had a trading volume of 1,036,529 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,536,756. Sherwin-Williams has a 1-year low of $232.06 and a 1-year high of $392.57. The stock has a market cap of $98.02 billion, a PE ratio of 39.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.17. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $367.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $332.74.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.19. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 75.58% and a net margin of 10.92%. The company had revenue of $6.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.29 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Sherwin-Williams will post 11.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a dividend of $0.715 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $338.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $392.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Redburn Atlantic raised Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. UBS Group raised their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $375.00 to $412.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated a “sector weight” rating on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Monday, October 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $373.17.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Allen J. Mistysyn sold 14,520 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $366.83, for a total transaction of $5,326,371.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 63,520 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,301,041.60. The trade was a 0.00 % 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. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sherwin-Williams

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 102.3% during the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 89 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 136.4% during the 2nd quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 104 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC raised its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 233.3% in the 2nd quarter. VitalStone Financial LLC now owns 110 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. Anfield Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the 2nd quarter valued at $41,000. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.