The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Short Interest Update

The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,560,000 shares, a growth of 24.9% from the April 30th total of 4,450,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,880,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days. Currently, 2.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sherwin-Williams

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Perkins Coie Trust Co purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the first quarter worth $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Synergy Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 583.3% during the first quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC now owns 82 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

SHW stock traded down $1.12 on Thursday, hitting $361.10. The company had a trading volume of 571,565 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,776,197. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $345.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $353.34. The stock has a market cap of $90.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.25. Sherwin-Williams has a 12-month low of $282.09 and a 12-month high of $400.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02.

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

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. Sherwin-Williams's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SHW has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $423.00 to $375.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $405.00 to $385.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised Sherwin-Williams from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $350.00 to $420.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $385.00 to $355.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $397.00.

Sherwin-Williams Company 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.