IFM Investors Pty Ltd Acquires 4,790 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd lifted its stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) by 9.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 54,562 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,790 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $20,825,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 73.6% during 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 period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 7,717 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,624,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 91.6% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 13,415 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $4,560,000 after purchasing an additional 6,413 shares during the period. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 1,693 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $576,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 9,125 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $3,102,000 after buying an additional 1,219 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company's stock.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Down 0.7%

SHW stock traded down $2.36 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $350.16. 1,088,732 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,716,156. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.77. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 1-year low of $294.32 and a 1-year high of $400.42. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $350.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $347.99. The firm has a market cap of $87.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.18.

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

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. Sherwin-Williams's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.87%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on SHW. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Sherwin-Williams from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $350.00 to $420.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup lowered Sherwin-Williams from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $405.00 to $385.00 in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Mizuho set a $395.00 price objective on Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased 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. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $289.00 to $296.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $391.31.

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.