California State Teachers Retirement System Sells 15,002 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

California State Teachers Retirement System lowered its holdings in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 408,689 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 15,002 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.16% of Sherwin-Williams worth $138,926,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SHW. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 0.6% during 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 during the period. FMR LLC lifted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,588,755 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,239,715,000 after acquiring an additional 106,093 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,829,702 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,636,679,000 after purchasing an additional 96,571 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 2.0% in 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 during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth about $1,359,747,000. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company's stock.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

SHW traded up $0.54 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $353.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,446,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,768,539. 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 company's 50-day moving average is $341.90 and its 200-day moving average is $356.74. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52 week low of $282.09 and a 52 week high of $400.42. The firm has a market cap of $88.90 billion, a PE ratio of 33.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.26.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $5.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.42 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 74.50%. Sherwin-Williams's revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.17 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.89%. Sherwin-Williams's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SHW has been the subject of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Sherwin-Williams from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $350.00 to $420.00 in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $430.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sherwin-Williams currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $397.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In other news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the business's 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 sale, the insider now owns 5,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,933,009.50. The trade was a 34.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.60% 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.