Heidi G. Petz
President and Chief Executive Officer at Sherwin-Williams
Thank you, Jim, and thank you all for joining us this morning. Before I begin my comments on the quarter and our outlook, please know that our thoughts and sympathies go out to all those that have been impacted by the recent hurricanes in the Southeast US.
Our priority has been the safety of our employees, our customers and their families. We've been working hard to provide our people with appropriate support and I'm amazed at how our teams on the ground have come together to help each other.
Approximately 200 of our stores were closed for some period in the third quarter following Hurricane Helene and nearly all were back online by the end of the quarter. Similarly, approximately 225 stores were closed for some period following Hurricane Milton at the start of the fourth quarter, and most of those stores are also now back online.
The perseverance and resiliency of our people are inspiring. I could not be prouder of the personal and professional support they are providing our customers as recovery and rebuild efforts begin.
At our recent financial community presentation, I described our success by design approach. We deliberately make the right choices and the right investments at the right time to drive sustained above-market growth and returns over the long term. It's an approach that has worked for us for decades and is exactly what we are doing right now. The current opportunity to gain market share is nearly unprecedented and we will continue to take full advantage of it.
While competitors are distracted or inconsistent in their execution, we offer consistency, stability and reliability. We are a predictable partner. We're doubling down on our strategy because we know it works. Our team is focused, determined and aggressive. We continue to provide our customers with solutions to make them more productive and profitable. We have great confidence in what we are doing and we believe our results will continue to demonstrate outperformance over time.
As far as specifics on the third quarter, I'll begin with the Paint Stores Group where sales increased by low single digits. Volume and price were both up low single digits. Pro architectural pricing realization was in the range we anticipated but was partially offset by unfavorable mix. Segment margin decreased to 24.5% due primarily to higher investments in long-term growth opportunities and mix in the quarter. Protective and marine was up high single digits against a low double-digit comparison and has a solid pipeline of projects extending into next year. In residential repaint, our prior investments continued to pay off, as we delivered the fifth consecutive quarter of mid-single-digit growth in a flat to down market.
New residential also grew at a mid-single-digit rate in a choppy but improving market. Commercial grew by low single digits against a high single-digit comparison. Property management was flat with continued delays in capex projects. DIY remained soft.
From a product perspective, interior paint sales grew faster than exterior paint sales where outdoor conditions caused delays in some of our largest regions. We have opened 45 net new stores year-to-date and expect to open 80 to 100 for the full year.
Moving on to our Consumer Brands Group. Sales decreased by high single digits, inclusive of an approximate 4% impact from unfavorable FX. Sales in North America decreased by a high single-digit percentage where weakness in existing home sales and inflation continue to pressure the DIY market.
In Europe, sales increased by a mid-single-digit percentage. In Latin America, volume and price were positive, but were more than offset by unfavorable FX. Adjusted segment margin expanded to 22.9%. This was primarily driven by higher fixed cost absorption in the manufacturing and distribution operations within the segment and effective cost control, partially offset by lower net sales.
In the Performance Coatings Group, net sales were effectively flat as volume was offset by unfavorable FX. Adjusted segment margin decreased to 18%, primarily due to lower sales in North America and unfavorable FX. This high teens margin level demonstrates the continued strong performance that reflects our differentiated customer solutions and business optimization efforts.
We continue to see choppy demand by division and region. Packaging delivered high single-digit growth with sales up in every region. Coil also delivered solid growth, driven by share gains. Industrial wood grew low single digits, driven by an acquisition.
New account wins in auto refinish have been masked by softness in our core business where consumer reluctance to pay deductibles is resulting in lower insurance claims. General industrial continued to face headwinds in heavy equipment and transportation markets.
Regionally, sales in the group were positive in all regions except North America, which decreased by a low single-digit percentage.
Moving on to our guidance. The slide deck issued with this morning's press release includes our expectations for consolidated and segment sales for the fourth quarter of 2024. The deck also includes our updated guidance for consolidated and segment sales for the full year 2024.
Our full year diluted net income per share guidance is unchanged. Our adjusted diluted net income per share growth remains at 8.7% over the prior year at the midpoint of our guidance. We are absolutely focused on executing our plan in the fourth quarter and delivering full year EPS results in the range we provided in July.
I also recognize that many of you are beginning to formulate your views for 2025. While we're not providing any specific guidance until January, I can share some high-level commentary that may be useful as a preliminary framework. The single largest variable heading into next year is the timing and pacing of a true inflection in the demand environment. We stand by our FCP commentary, but it's only a question of when, not if. However, trying to peg this to a specific quarter, let alone a specific month or week, is not something we can do with precision.
Our forecasting models incorporate a wide variety of indicators, including LIRA, existing home sales, housing starts, housing affordability, interest rates, consumer spending, and industrial production, among many others. Direct input from our customers is a critical data point that also informs our outlook.
While several signals are beginning to move from red to yellow and some from yellow to green, our initial view is that demand is likely to remain choppy in the first half of the year.
What is certain is our strategy. We deliver differentiated solutions that make our customers more productive and more profitable. The good news is that in a macro and a competitive environment like the current one, approach becomes even more valuable to our current customers, while also attracting many new ones. We will continue being very aggressive in pursuit of new business and share of wallet gains.
Sherwin-Williams is incredibly well-positioned in each of our targeted end markets. We are confident we will outperform the market in all environments and significantly so when demand becomes more robust. We are committed to driving success by design for our customers, our employees and our shareholders.
This concludes our prepared remarks. With that, I'd like to thank you for joining us this morning and we'll be happy to take your questions.
