Robert W. Baird Raises Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) Price Target to $310.00

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) had its target price raised by Robert W. Baird from $300.00 to $310.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. Robert W. Baird currently has a neutral rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $285.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $360.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $285.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $385.00 to $380.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a neutral rating to a buy rating and raised their target price for the stock from $312.00 to $402.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sherwin-Williams currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $333.39.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SHW opened at $303.74 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $328.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $298.77. Sherwin-Williams has a 52-week low of $221.76 and a 52-week high of $348.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. The company has a market cap of $77.29 billion, a PE ratio of 32.38, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.15.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.22 by ($0.05). Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 73.74% and a net margin of 10.52%. The business had revenue of $5.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.04 EPS. Sherwin-Williams’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Sherwin-Williams will post 11.46 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.715 dividend. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.49%.

Insider Activity at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, insider Justin T. Binns sold 1,563 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 14,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 Sherwin-Williams 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 14,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,935,302.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Mary L. Garceau sold 23,518 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $322.66, for a total transaction of $7,588,317.88. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 28,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,187,743.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 32,050 shares of company stock valued at $10,340,237. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SHW. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter worth $1,176,356,000. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 65.4% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,427,014 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,384,160,000 after purchasing an additional 2,146,102 shares during the last quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter worth $432,737,000. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 38.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,840,789 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,197,952,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075,351 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 2,853.9% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 650,186 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $202,793,000 after purchasing an additional 628,175 shares during the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.