Bridges Investment Management Inc. Sells 931 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Bridges Investment Management Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,893 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 931 shares during the quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $28,858,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.67% of the company's stock.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

SHW stock traded up $7.26 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $362.54. The company had a trading volume of 1,987,176 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,597,838. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $351.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $365.87. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a fifty-two week low of $282.09 and a fifty-two week high of $400.42. The company has a market cap of $91.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 prior year, the company posted $1.81 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $0.79 dividend. This is an increase from Sherwin-Williams's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. Sherwin-Williams's payout ratio is presently 29.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.30, for a total transaction of $1,008,479.70. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,933,009.50. This represents a 34.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on SHW. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Berenberg Bank raised Sherwin-Williams from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $321.00 to $420.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $403.31.

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.