Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. Decreases Stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 12.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,811 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 261 shares during the quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $565,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,256,686 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $5,421,518,000 after buying an additional 187,478 shares in the last quarter. 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 acquiring an additional 2,146,102 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 50.9% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 5,180,068 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,229,386,000 after acquiring an additional 1,747,586 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.8% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,179,547 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $936,902,000 after acquiring an additional 73,605 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 13.0% in the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,795,775 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $742,334,000 after purchasing an additional 321,529 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Todd D. Rea sold 2,449 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.54, for a total value of $767,859.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 9,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,925,014.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Sherwin-Williams news, SVP Mary L. Garceau sold 23,518 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.66, for a total value of $7,588,317.88. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 28,475 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,187,743.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Todd D. Rea sold 2,449 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.54, for a total value of $767,859.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 9,329 shares in the company, valued at $2,925,014.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 32,050 shares of company stock valued at $10,340,237 over the last ninety days. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $285.00 to $317.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com raised shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 8th. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $300.00 price objective (up previously from $270.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $310.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $360.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $325.94.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

NYSE:SHW opened at $310.16 on Thursday. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a twelve month low of $221.76 and a twelve month high of $348.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $328.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $296.92. The stock has a market cap of $78.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.15.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.01. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 74.72%. The firm had revenue of $5.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.89 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 11.44 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 yield of 0.92%. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is currently 30.92%.

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.