14,451 Shares in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Purchased by Sapient Capital LLC

Sapient Capital LLC bought a new position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 14,451 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $4,507,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SHW. First Hawaiian Bank increased its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 7,559 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,358,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Tsfg LLC raised its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 754 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $235,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 4,108 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,281,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC now owns 848 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $263,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Alpha Cubed Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 1,105 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $345,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SHW has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Sherwin-Williams from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $390.00 to $370.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com cut Sherwin-Williams from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $340.00 to $334.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sherwin-Williams currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $341.39.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Up 2.2 %

NYSE SHW traded up $6.84 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $311.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,027,799 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,681,363. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $327.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $301.05. The company has a market capitalization of $78.93 billion, a PE ratio of 33.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.18. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52 week low of $221.76 and a 52 week high of $348.37.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.22 by ($0.05). Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 10.52% and a return on equity of 73.74%. The company had revenue of $5.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.04 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 11.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.715 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. Sherwin-Williams's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.49%.

Insider Activity at Sherwin-Williams

In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Justin T. Binns sold 1,563 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $338.87, for a total value of $529,653.81. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 14,564 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,935,302.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Justin T. Binns sold 1,563 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.87, for a total transaction of $529,653.81. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 14,564 shares in the company, valued at $4,935,302.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Mary L. Garceau sold 23,518 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.66, for a total value of $7,588,317.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 28,475 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,187,743.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 32,050 shares of company stock valued at $10,340,237 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

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.