Metis Global Partners LLC Reduces Stock Position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Metis Global Partners LLC lessened its stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,018 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 148 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $5,620,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SHW. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,256,686 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $5,421,518,000 after buying an additional 187,478 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its position in Sherwin-Williams by 65.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,427,014 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,384,160,000 after purchasing an additional 2,146,102 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,063,957 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,291,563,000 after purchasing an additional 75,571 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 2,662,647 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $679,108,000 after purchasing an additional 28,554 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,524,391 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $643,846,000 after purchasing an additional 106,319 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, insider Todd D. Rea sold 2,449 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.54, for a total transaction of $767,859.46. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,925,014.66. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Gregory P. Sofish sold 1,830 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.70, for a total value of $586,881.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,029,710.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Todd D. Rea sold 2,449 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.54, for a total transaction of $767,859.46. Following the sale, the insider now owns 9,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,925,014.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 32,050 shares of company stock worth $10,340,237 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on SHW. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $377.00 target price (down previously from $385.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $340.00 to $334.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $395.00 to $380.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $390.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $341.39.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:SHW traded up $6.84 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $311.30. The stock had a trading volume of 2,027,799 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,681,363. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.18. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $327.00 and its 200-day moving average is $301.80. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 1 year low of $221.76 and a 1 year high of $348.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.78.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $5.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.50 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 10.52% and a return on equity of 73.74%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.04 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 11.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.715 dividend. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.49%.

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.