Shakespeare Wealth Management LLC Sells 157 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Shakespeare Wealth Management LLC trimmed its stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 8.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,654 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 157 shares during the period. Shakespeare Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $562,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter worth about $1,359,747,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter worth approximately $230,829,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 41,520.8% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 479,472 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $162,987,000 after buying an additional 478,320 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 28.6% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,032,170 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $690,796,000 after acquiring an additional 451,505 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Sherwin-Williams by 79.5% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 653,548 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $219,945,000 after acquiring an additional 289,450 shares during the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of Sherwin-Williams 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,933,009.50. This trade represents a 34.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on SHW shares. Zelman & Associates upgraded Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $380.00 price target (down previously from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $321.00 to $420.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $398.94.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

Shares of SHW opened at $331.91 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $352.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $362.71. 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 twelve month low of $282.09 and a twelve month high of $400.42. The firm has a market cap of $83.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.46, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. This is a boost from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.95%.

About Sherwin-Williams

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.