FORA Capital LLC Invests $1.53 Million in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

FORA Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 4,513 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $1,534,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SHW. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter worth $1,359,747,000. Capital Research Global Investors lifted 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 buying an additional 960,724 shares during the period. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 54.2% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,073,533 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $704,855,000 after buying an additional 728,798 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter worth $230,829,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 28.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,725,827 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $926,590,000 after buying an additional 595,586 shares during the period. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.30, for a total value of $1,008,479.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,933,009.50. The trade was a 34.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SHW has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $380.00 price objective (down previously from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Monday, March 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $430.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Mizuho set a $395.00 target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Sherwin-Williams from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $350.00 to $420.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $397.00.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

NYSE SHW traded down $1.17 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $355.98. The stock had a trading volume of 1,390,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,763,402. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $341.70 and a 200 day moving average of $355.25. The stock has a market cap of $89.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.25. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52-week low of $282.09 and a 52-week high of $400.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.02. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 74.50% and a net margin of 11.61%. The company had revenue of $5.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.17 earnings per share. Sherwin-Williams's revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Sherwin-Williams's payout ratio is presently 29.87%.

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.