Blue Trust Inc. Has $1.11 Million Stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) by 37.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,254 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 886 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.'s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $1,106,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 18.2% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,482,662 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,474,238,000 after acquiring an additional 999,164 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,733,131 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,799,196,000 after acquiring an additional 58,463 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 1.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,421,090 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $542,387,000 after acquiring an additional 15,843 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,412,722 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $542,711,000 after purchasing an additional 78,075 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,047,174 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $399,675,000 after purchasing an additional 10,709 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Gregory P. Sofish sold 2,565 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.63, for a total value of $971,185.95. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 6,329 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,396,349.27. The trade was a 28.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Mary L. Garceau sold 15,770 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $397.92, for a total transaction of $6,275,198.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 29,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,621,253.60. This represents a 35.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com cut Sherwin-Williams from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $400.65.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Down 2.0 %

SHW stock traded down $7.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $358.23. The company had a trading volume of 1,870,776 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,418,212. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52 week low of $282.09 and a 52 week high of $400.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $359.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $363.34. The company has a market capitalization of $90.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.68, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.22.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.02. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 74.45% and a net margin of 11.09%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.81 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 11.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.