Wills Financial Group LLC Takes $5.11 Million Position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Key Points

• Wills Financial Group LLC has made a new investment in Sherwin-Williams by purchasing 14,641 shares valued at approximately $5.1 million, representing about 2.3% of its investment portfolio.
• The company reported an EPS of $3.38 for its last quarterly earnings, which missed analysts' expectations of $3.76, although quarterly revenue remained steady at $6.31 billion.
• Sherwin-Williams recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.79 per share, with a dividend yield of 0.9% and a payout ratio of 31.35%.

Wills Financial Group LLC bought a new position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 14,641 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $5,113,000. Sherwin-Williams comprises approximately 2.3% of Wills Financial Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,588,755 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,239,715,000 after purchasing an additional 106,093 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 47.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,998,647 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,019,329,000 after purchasing an additional 960,724 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 28.0% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,725,827 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $926,590,000 after acquiring an additional 595,586 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 54.2% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,073,533 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $704,855,000 after acquiring an additional 728,798 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,826,498 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $620,881,000 after acquiring an additional 111,128 shares during the period. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $390.00 to $378.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $420.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $395.00 to $380.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $405.00 to $391.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $289.00 to $296.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sherwin-Williams currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $383.33.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

Shares of SHW traded down $0.71 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $350.02. The stock had a trading volume of 1,410,271 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,775,594. The firm has a market capitalization of $87.27 billion, a PE ratio of 34.72, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.16. 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $345.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $348.05. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 12 month low of $308.84 and a 12 month high of $400.42.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.76 by ($0.38). The company had revenue of $6.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.31 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 11.03% and a return on equity of 66.91%. Sherwin-Williams's revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.70 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Sherwin-Williams's payout ratio is 31.35%.

About Sherwin-Williams

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.