Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Decreases Stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company $SHW

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH trimmed its stake by 26.4% in Q4, selling 103,066 shares and leaving it with 286,655 shares (about 0.12%) of Sherwin‑Williams, valued at roughly $93.0 million.
• Several major analysts cut price targets and some ratings, but the consensus remains a "Moderate Buy" with a $379.08 price target (nine Buys, five Holds).
• Sherwin‑Williams beat quarterly estimates (EPS $2.23 vs. $2.16; revenue $5.60B vs. $5.57B), and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.80 (annualized $3.20, ~1.0% yield).

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH trimmed its position in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) by 26.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 286,655 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 103,066 shares during the quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned approximately 0.12% of Sherwin-Williams worth $93,019,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cordatus Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 149.4% during the third quarter. Cordatus Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,588 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $3,320,000 after purchasing an additional 5,744 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 16.1% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 125,914 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $43,536,000 after purchasing an additional 17,422 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 26.1% during the third quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 30,927 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $10,709,000 after purchasing an additional 6,408 shares in the last quarter. Mairs & Power Inc. boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 0.7% during the third quarter. Mairs & Power Inc. now owns 464,043 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $160,680,000 after purchasing an additional 3,430 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inscription Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter worth $1,069,000. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SHW has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $390.00 to $376.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Bank of America cut their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $365.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Friday, March 27th. Zacks Research raised Sherwin-Williams from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut Sherwin-Williams from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $410.00 to $365.00 in a report on Friday, April 10th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $379.08.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, SVP Bryan J. Young sold 2,513 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $364.47, for a total value of $915,913.11. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 10,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,661,101.15. This represents a 20.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,976 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $359.50, for a total value of $1,069,872.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 5,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,928,717.50. The trade was a 35.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

NYSE SHW opened at $334.36 on Wednesday. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a fifty-two week low of $301.58 and a fifty-two week high of $379.65. The stock has a market cap of $82.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.27. The business has a fifty day moving average of $336.43 and a 200-day moving average of $338.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $5.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.57 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 65.26% and a net margin of 10.90%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This is an increase from Sherwin-Williams's previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. This represents a $3.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. Sherwin-Williams's payout ratio is currently 31.16%.

About Sherwin-Williams

Sherwin-Williams NYSE: SHW is a global manufacturer and distributor of paints, coatings and related products. Founded in 1866 and headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company supplies a broad range of coatings for residential, commercial and industrial applications. Its product offering includes architectural paints and stains, industrial and protective coatings, automotive finishes, and a variety of sundry products such as primers, sealants and specialty treatments used by professionals and consumers.

The company sells through multiple channels, including a large network of company-operated retail paint stores that serve professional contractors and do-it-yourself consumers, as well as through distributors and mass retailers.

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