KBC Group NV Reduces Stock Position in The Sherwin-Williams Company $SHW

KBC Group NV lessened its holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 3.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 144,643 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 5,788 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $46,869,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Rossby Financial LCC increased its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 96.0% in the third quarter. Rossby Financial LCC now owns 98 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 129.8% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 42.4% during the third quarter. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 131 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

Sherwin-Williams Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE:SHW opened at $333.19 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $337.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $338.48. The company has a market capitalization of $82.42 billion, a PE ratio of 32.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52-week low of $301.58 and a 52-week high of $379.65.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.07. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 65.26% and a net margin of 10.90%.The firm had revenue of $5.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.80 per share. This is an increase from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is 31.16%.

Insider Transactions at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, SVP Bryan J. Young sold 2,513 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $364.47, for a total transaction of $915,913.11. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 10,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,661,101.15. This trade represents a 20.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,976 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $359.50, for a total value of $1,069,872.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,928,717.50. This represents a 35.68% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SHW has been the subject of several research reports. Zacks Research raised Sherwin-Williams from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Mizuho dropped their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $371.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $390.00 to $376.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $385.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $380.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $379.77.

Sherwin-Williams Profile

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE: SHW) is a global manufacturer and distributor of paints, coatings and related products. Founded in 1866 and headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company supplies a broad range of coatings for residential, commercial and industrial applications. Its product offering includes architectural paints and stains, industrial and protective coatings, automotive finishes, and a variety of sundry products such as primers, sealants and specialty treatments used by professionals and consumers.

The company sells through multiple channels, including a large network of company-operated retail paint stores that serve professional contractors and do-it-yourself consumers, as well as through distributors and mass retailers.