Carlson Capital Management Cuts Stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Carlson Capital Management lowered its holdings in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 7.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,748 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 799 shares during the quarter. Sherwin-Williams makes up 0.1% of Carlson Capital Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Carlson Capital Management’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $3,314,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 80.0% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 1,177 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 52.6% during the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,680 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,271,000 after purchasing an additional 2,303 shares during the last quarter. Burney Co. increased its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Burney Co. now owns 17,272 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $5,871,000 after purchasing an additional 766 shares during the last quarter. Kerusso Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 75.9% during the 4th quarter. Kerusso Capital Management LLC now owns 10,290 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,498,000 after purchasing an additional 4,439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 117,055 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,676,000 after purchasing an additional 4,681 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of SHW stock opened at $342.73 on Tuesday. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a twelve month low of $282.09 and a twelve month high of $400.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $353.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $365.49. 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) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.02. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 74.50% and a net margin of 11.61%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.81 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This is a boost from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is 29.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on SHW shares. Mizuho cut their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $438.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 target price on Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $380.00 price objective (down previously from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $401.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.30, for a total transaction of $1,008,479.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,365 shares in the company, valued at $1,933,009.50. This represents a 34.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.