7,305 Shares in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) Purchased by SageOak Financial LLC

SageOak Financial LLC purchased a new position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 7,305 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,483,000. Sherwin-Williams makes up 2.3% of SageOak Financial LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,047,174 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $399,675,000 after purchasing an additional 10,709 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,647 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,010,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,239 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,000,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. LMR Partners LLP purchased a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the 3rd quarter valued at about $314,000. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 5,076 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,937,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Down 2.1 %

NYSE:SHW opened at $335.23 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $84.31 billion, a PE ratio of 31.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a twelve month low of $282.09 and a twelve month high of $400.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The company’s 50 day moving average is $353.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $365.25.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.02. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 74.50%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.81 EPS. Analysts anticipate that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other 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 value of $1,008,479.70. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,933,009.50. This represents a 34.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on SHW. Zelman & Associates raised shares of Sherwin-Williams to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $321.00 to $420.00 in a report on Friday, January 24th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $380.00 price target (down from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $401.13.

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.