State of Wyoming Purchases 399 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

State of Wyoming increased its position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 143.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 678 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after buying an additional 399 shares during the quarter. State of Wyoming’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $230,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SHW. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC lifted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 41.7% in the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,365 shares in the company, valued at $1,933,009.50. This trade represents a 34.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Shares of SHW stock opened at $352.78 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $88.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.44, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.25. The business’s fifty day moving average is $342.98 and its 200 day moving average is $354.87. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a twelve month low of $282.09 and a twelve month 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.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.23 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $5.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.42 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 74.50% and a net margin of 11.61%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.17 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is presently 29.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $370.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $380.00 price objective (down previously from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Barclays decreased their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $385.00 to $355.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Citigroup decreased their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $423.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Sherwin-Williams from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $350.00 to $420.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $397.00.

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.