Advisors Preferred LLC Invests $754,000 in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Advisors Preferred LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 2,150 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $754,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.5% in the first quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,468 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,560,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 73,164 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $25,548,000 after acquiring an additional 1,703 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 11.7% in the 1st quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,576 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $550,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 111,082 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $38,789,000 after buying an additional 1,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 24.9% during the 1st quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 379,765 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $132,610,000 after purchasing an additional 75,704 shares in the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Down 0.1%

SHW traded down $0.34 on Friday, hitting $339.87. 1,867,755 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,760,740. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 12 month low of $308.84 and a 12 month high of $400.42. The company has a market cap of $85.17 billion, a PE ratio of 33.72, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.78. The stock's fifty day moving average is $348.62 and its 200-day moving average is $348.06.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.76 by ($0.38). Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 66.91% and a net margin of 11.03%. The company had revenue of $6.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.31 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.70 EPS. The business's revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Sherwin-Williams's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on SHW. UBS Group cut their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $395.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Mizuho cut their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $400.00 to $385.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $420.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $385.00 to $355.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $383.33.

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.