Bridgewater Advisors Inc. Makes New $719,000 Investment in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,065 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $719,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Voleon Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth $2,011,000. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 25.0% during the first quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,006 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $352,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the first quarter worth $306,000. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 18.4% in the first quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 882 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $308,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. Finally, Horizon Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 6,031 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,050,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. 77.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of SHW traded down $1.73 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $338.17. 645,269 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,706,057. The firm's fifty day moving average is $350.03 and its 200-day moving average is $347.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 1.18. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 1 year low of $308.84 and a 1 year high of $400.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.02. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 11.63% and a return on equity of 71.86%. The company had revenue of $5.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.42 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.17 earnings per share. Sherwin-Williams's revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Sherwin-Williams's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Mizuho set a $395.00 target price on Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Citigroup lowered Sherwin-Williams from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $405.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $289.00 to $296.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Barclays lowered their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $385.00 to $355.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $398.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $391.94.

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.