Valmark Advisers Inc. Makes New Investment in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Valmark Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 669 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 65.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,427,014 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,384,160,000 after buying an additional 2,146,102 shares during the last quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $432,737,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in 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. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 188.3% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 758,914 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $193,561,000 after purchasing an additional 495,668 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 49.7% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 985,909 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $251,456,000 after purchasing an additional 327,372 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of SHW opened at $306.09 on Tuesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $77.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.63, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.15. 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 of $327.99 and a 200-day moving average of $300.22.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $5.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.50 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 73.74% and a net margin of 10.52%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.04 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 11.43 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.715 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.93%. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on SHW shares. KeyCorp upgraded Sherwin-Williams from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $400.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. StockNews.com cut Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $317.00 to $315.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $390.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued 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.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Todd D. Rea sold 2,449 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.54, for a total transaction of $767,859.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 9,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,925,014.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Todd D. Rea sold 2,449 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.54, for a total transaction of $767,859.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,925,014.66. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Justin T. Binns sold 1,563 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was 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 owns 14,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,935,302.68. 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 quarter. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

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.