Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Raises Position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) by 102.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,847 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,020 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $6,747,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 1.0% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,047,174 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $399,675,000 after buying an additional 10,709 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 3rd quarter valued at $252,000. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC bought a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 3rd quarter worth $608,000. Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 3rd quarter worth $350,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 2,092.0% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 16,747 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $6,392,000 after purchasing an additional 15,983 shares in the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on SHW. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and set a $380.00 target price (down previously from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price 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 target on Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $385.00 to $355.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $391.25.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

NYSE SHW traded down $0.56 on Wednesday, reaching $331.40. 1,338,161 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,772,797. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $343.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $357.95. The firm has a market cap of $83.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.79. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a fifty-two week low of $282.09 and a fifty-two week high of $400.42.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 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 business earned $1.81 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Sherwin-Williams's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

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 stock was sold at an average price of $360.30, for a total transaction of $1,008,479.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly 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 SEC, which is available through this link. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.