The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHWGet Free Report) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation, eleven have issued a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $403.31.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on SHW shares. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $423.00 price objective (up from $418.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 28th.

View Our Latest Analysis on Sherwin-Williams

Sherwin-Williams Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE SHW opened at $355.31 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $351.67 and a 200 day moving average price of $365.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market cap of $89.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.22. Sherwin-Williams has a 52-week low of $282.09 and a 52-week high of $400.42.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHWGet Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.02. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 74.50% and a net margin of 11.61%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.81 EPS. Analysts expect that Sherwin-Williams will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. This is a positive change from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is currently 29.95%.

Insider Activity

In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of Sherwin-Williams 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,365 shares in the company, 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 SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sherwin-Williams

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SHW. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 88.9% during the third quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Sherwin-Williams

(Get Free Report

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.

Further Reading

Analyst Recommendations for Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW)

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