Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Sells 86,839 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD reduced its position in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,152,195 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 86,839 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned 2.84% of Sherwin-Williams worth $2,431,247,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,836,648 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $7,422,932,000 after buying an additional 138,170 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,588,755 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,239,715,000 after acquiring an additional 106,093 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,829,702 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,636,679,000 after purchasing an additional 96,571 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,316,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,467,138,000 after purchasing an additional 86,268 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter valued at $1,359,747,000. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

NYSE SHW opened at $332.18 on Wednesday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $343.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $358.14. 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 Sherwin-Williams Company has a 1 year low of $282.09 and a 1 year high of $400.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.55 billion, a PE ratio of 31.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.26.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.81 EPS. Analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $321.00 to $420.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $380.00 to $350.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price objective on Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $405.00 to $385.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $430.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Sherwin-Williams presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $391.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the insider now owns 5,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,933,009.50. This represents a 34.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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