The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Short Interest Update

The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,920,000 shares, a decline of 15.0% from the March 15th total of 5,790,000 shares. Approximately 2.1% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,930,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.5 days.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Up 0.5 %

SHW opened at $333.03 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $83.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.57, 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 current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $344.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $358.66. Sherwin-Williams has a fifty-two week low of $282.09 and a fifty-two week high of $400.42.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the company earned $1.81 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Sherwin-Williams will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sherwin-Williams

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 1.0% during 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 during the last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $252,000. Eaton Financial Holdings Company LLC acquired a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the 3rd quarter valued at $608,000. Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams in the 3rd quarter valued at $350,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 2,092.0% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 16,747 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,392,000 after purchasing an additional 15,983 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on SHW. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $430.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price objective on Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $380.00 to $350.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $438.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $392.50.

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.