StockNews.com Lowers Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) to Hold

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on SHW. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $317.00 to $315.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group raised shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $312.00 to $402.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $395.00 to $380.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Northcoast Research raised shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $360.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $285.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $337.37.

Sherwin-Williams Trading Up 0.4 %

SHW traded up $1.07 during trading on Thursday, reaching $304.80. 2,004,847 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,461,671. Sherwin-Williams has a one year low of $221.76 and a one year high of $348.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.56 billion, a PE ratio of 32.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.15. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $328.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $298.81.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last posted its 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). Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 73.74% and a net margin of 10.52%. The business had revenue of $5.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.04 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Sherwin-Williams will post 11.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Todd D. Rea sold 2,449 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.54, for a total value of $767,859.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 9,329 shares in the company, valued at $2,925,014.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Gregory P. Sofish sold 1,830 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.70, for a total transaction of $586,881.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 6,329 shares in the company, valued at $2,029,710.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Todd D. Rea sold 2,449 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sold a total of 32,050 shares of company stock worth $10,340,237 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sherwin-Williams

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Union Savings Bank bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter worth about $28,000. First United Bank & Trust bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Lee Financial Co bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

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.