Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 121,280 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company $SHW

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 71.7% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 47,855 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 121,280 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $15,470,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Eastern Bank grew its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 50.8% during the second quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 89 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1.0% during the third quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 3,068 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $992,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 812 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $263,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Heartland Bank & Trust Co grew its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co now owns 1,174 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $376,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 4.9% in the third quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 713 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Sherwin-Williams news, SVP Bryan J. Young sold 1,314 shares of Sherwin-Williams stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $345.71, for a total value of $454,262.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 10,045 shares in the company, valued at $3,472,656.95. The trade was a 11.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO James P. Lang sold 1,309 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.91, for a total value of $473,740.19. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $311,604.51. The trade was a 60.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 22,315 shares of company stock valued at $7,848,071 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Sherwin-Williams Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of SHW stock opened at $350.81 on Friday. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a fifty-two week low of $289.86 and a fifty-two week high of $377.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.24, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.05. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $331.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $333.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.71.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.69 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $6.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.78 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 69.51% and a net margin of 10.74%. The business’s revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.59 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 4th. Investors of record on Friday, November 13th will be issued a $0.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $3.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SHW has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $353.00 price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $410.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $415.00 price target (up from $390.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Friday, October 9th. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $355.00 to $380.00 in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank lifted their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $355.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $377.29.

About Sherwin-Williams

The Sherwin-Williams Company is a global manufacturer, retailer and distributor of paints and coatings. Founded in 1866 and headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, the company serves customers through company-operated paint stores, home improvement retailers, distributors and other channels. Its products include paints, stains and related supplies for homes and commercial buildings, as well as coatings for industrial, automotive, protective and marine applications. The company markets products under brands including Sherwin-Williams and Valspar.