Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lessened its position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) by 10.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 35,936 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 4,359 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC's holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $11,208,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Lee Financial Co bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company's stock.

Sherwin-Williams Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of Sherwin-Williams stock traded up $6.84 during trading 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 stock has a market cap of $78.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52 week low of $221.76 and a 52 week high of $348.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $327.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $301.80.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.22 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $5.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.50 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 10.52% and a return on equity of 73.74%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.04 EPS. Equities 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a dividend of $0.715 per share. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Sherwin-Williams's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group upgraded Sherwin-Williams from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $312.00 to $402.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Sherwin-Williams from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $385.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $395.00 to $380.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $285.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $341.39.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Justin T. Binns sold 1,563 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $338.87, for a total value of $529,653.81. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 14,564 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,935,302.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Justin T. Binns sold 1,563 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $338.87, for a total transaction of $529,653.81. Following the sale, the insider now owns 14,564 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,935,302.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Todd D. Rea sold 2,449 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.54, for a total value of $767,859.46. Following the sale, the insider now owns 9,329 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,925,014.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 32,050 shares of company stock worth $10,340,237. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.