Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $329.91, but opened at $320.42. Sherwin-Williams shares last traded at $328.52, with a volume of 288,362 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on SHW. Zelman & Associates upgraded Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price objective on Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Friday, January 31st. 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 research report on Friday, January 24th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $423.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $393.31.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $347.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $360.37. The stock has a market cap of $84.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.95, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.26. 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.02. Sherwin-Williams had a return on equity of 74.50% and a net margin of 11.61%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This is a boost from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.94%. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.95%.

Insider Activity at Sherwin-Williams

In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the company’s 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Perkins Coie Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Stokes Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Stokes Capital Advisors LLC now owns 26,235 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $9,161,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 3.4% in the first quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC now owns 4,491 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,568,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Generali Investments Management Co LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 9.5% in the first quarter. Generali Investments Management Co LLC now owns 598 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $209,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 36.7% in the first quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 8,227 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,873,000 after buying an additional 2,210 shares during the period. 77.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.