Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $357.97, but opened at $382.20. Sherwin-Williams shares last traded at $373.12, with a volume of 1,330,103 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SHW has been the subject of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $344.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $395.29.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $373.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $337.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.83. The company has a market cap of $95.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 1.17.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $3.37 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.56 by ($0.19). The firm had revenue of $6.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.20 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 11.09% and a return on equity of 74.45%. Sherwin-Williams’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.20 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 11.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.715 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.86 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.76%. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is 28.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Allen J. Mistysyn sold 14,520 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $366.83, for a total value of $5,326,371.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 63,520 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,301,041.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sherwin-Williams

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SHW. Norden Group LLC bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams in the 1st quarter valued at $329,000. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 16.2% in the first quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 1,003 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $348,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 17.2% in the first quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 1,168 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $406,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Flossbach Von Storch AG raised its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 20.6% during the 1st quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG now owns 46,932 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $16,301,000 after purchasing an additional 8,003 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 704 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $245,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. 77.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.