The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Shares Sold by Montag & Caldwell LLC

Montag & Caldwell LLC lessened its holdings in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) by 83.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,128 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 10,842 shares during the period. Montag & Caldwell LLC's holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $723,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SHW. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in Sherwin-Williams by 80.0% during the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 1,177 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $400,000 after buying an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 52.6% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,680 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,271,000 after acquiring an additional 2,303 shares during the period. Burney Co. lifted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Burney Co. now owns 17,272 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $5,871,000 after purchasing an additional 766 shares during the period. Kerusso Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 75.9% in the fourth quarter. Kerusso Capital Management LLC now owns 10,290 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $3,498,000 after purchasing an additional 4,439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canoe Financial LP grew its position in Sherwin-Williams by 542.0% during the 4th quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 339,707 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $115,477,000 after purchasing an additional 286,791 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.67% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.30, for a total value of $1,008,479.70. Following 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:SHW traded up $1.75 during trading on Friday, hitting $333.03. 2,238,297 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,787,484. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $344.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $358.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.57, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.26. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 12-month low of $282.09 and a 12-month high of $400.42.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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 net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 74.50%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.81 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Sherwin-Williams's payout ratio is 29.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SHW. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $385.00 to $355.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $430.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of Sherwin-Williams to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $423.00 to $375.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $392.50.

Sherwin-Williams 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.