Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) Raised to "Neutral" at Bank of America

Key Points

• Bank of America upgraded Sherwin-Williams from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating, with a new price objective of $375.00, indicating a potential upside of 1.53% from the current stock price.
• Other analysts have mixed views on Sherwin-Williams, with Royal Bank Of Canada raising its target price to $420.00 while Wells Fargo cut its target price to $400.00, reflecting a range of analyst sentiment towards the stock.
• Sherwin-Williams reported $3.38 earnings per share for the last quarter, missing analysts' expectations by ($0.38), but still showing a 0.6% year-over-year revenue increase.

Bank of America upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Free Report) from an underperform rating to a neutral rating in a report issued on Thursday morning, Marketbeat reports. They currently have $375.00 price objective on the specialty chemicals company's stock, up from their previous price objective of $296.00.

A number of other analysts have also commented on SHW. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $395.00 to $380.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup cut their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $385.00 to $375.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $420.00 to $400.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $400.00 to $385.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $388.60.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:SHW traded down $1.39 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $364.18. The stock had a trading volume of 1,785,134 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,253,146. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.78. The firm's 50 day moving average is $346.00 and its 200-day moving average is $347.91. Sherwin-Williams has a 1 year low of $308.84 and a 1 year high of $400.42.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.76 by ($0.38). Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 66.91% and a net margin of 11.03%. The business had revenue of $6.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.70 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Sherwin-Williams will post 12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, CAO James P. Lang sold 860 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.35, for a total value of $301,301.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 377 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $132,081.95. This trade represents a 69.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 73.6% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,545 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $525,000 after purchasing an additional 655 shares during the last quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,644 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,579,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC lifted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 2,565 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $872,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 76.3% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 15,555 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $5,288,000 after purchasing an additional 6,731 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co boosted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 11.2% in the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 292,617 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $99,395,000 after purchasing an additional 29,444 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company's stock.

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.