Freestone Grove Partners LP Invests $70.90 Million in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 208,564 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $70,897,000. Sherwin-Williams makes up about 0.9% of Freestone Grove Partners LP's portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Freestone Grove Partners LP owned approximately 0.08% of Sherwin-Williams at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SHW. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,836,648 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $7,422,932,000 after buying an additional 138,170 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,588,755 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,239,715,000 after purchasing an additional 106,093 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,829,702 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,636,679,000 after purchasing an additional 96,571 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,316,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,467,138,000 after purchasing an additional 86,268 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,359,747,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.67% of the company's stock.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Up 0.0 %

Sherwin-Williams stock traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $359.65. The stock had a trading volume of 1,515,495 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,766,004. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $342.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $355.86. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 12 month low of $282.09 and a 12 month high of $400.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The company has a market capitalization of $90.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.09, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.24.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $5.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.42 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 74.50% and a net margin of 11.61%. Sherwin-Williams's quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.17 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Sherwin-Williams's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.87%.

Insider Transactions at Sherwin-Williams

In other news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on SHW shares. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group reduced their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $430.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Zelman & Associates upgraded Sherwin-Williams to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Sherwin-Williams from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $350.00 to $420.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $397.00.

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.