Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC Sells 28,780 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Key Points

• Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company by 45.2%, selling 28,780 shares and holding a total of 34,893 shares valued at $12.18 million after the transaction.
• Institutional investors collectively own 77.67% of Sherwin-Williams, highlighting strong institutional interest as several others increased their stakes during the last quarter.
• The latest earnings report showed Sherwin-Williams missed EPS expectations with a reported $3.38 EPS, compared to analysts' consensus of $3.76, while quarterly revenue rose by 0.6% year-over-year.

Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC decreased its position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) by 45.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 34,893 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 28,780 shares during the quarter. Azimuth Capital Investment Management LLC's holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $12,184,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SHW. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 73.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,545 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $525,000 after acquiring an additional 655 shares during the last quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,644 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,579,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 2,565 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $872,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 76.3% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 15,555 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $5,288,000 after purchasing an additional 6,731 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 292,617 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $99,395,000 after purchasing an additional 29,444 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sherwin-Williams news, CAO James P. Lang sold 860 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.35, for a total value of $301,301.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 377 shares of the company's stock, valued at $132,081.95. The trade was a 69.52% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted 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, May 1st. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $395.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $420.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Bank of America raised shares of Sherwin-Williams from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $296.00 to $375.00 in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $395.00 to $380.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $388.60.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

SHW stock opened at $365.74 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a one year low of $308.84 and a one year high of $400.42. The stock has a market cap of $91.19 billion, a PE ratio of 36.28, a P/E/G ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 1.16. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $345.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $348.00.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.38 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.70 EPS. Sherwin-Williams's quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Sherwin-Williams's payout ratio is currently 31.35%.

Sherwin-Williams 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.

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