Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. Trims Stock Holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. decreased its holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 5.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,892 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 283 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co.’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $1,663,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC grew its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 41.7% during the 4th quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

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

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SHW opened at $333.03 on Friday. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52 week low of $282.09 and a 52 week high of $400.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The firm has a market cap of $83.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.26. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $344.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $358.89.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last released 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 net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 74.50%. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.81 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SHW has been the topic of several recent research reports. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $321.00 to $420.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $438.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $392.50.

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.