Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Reduces Holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp reduced its position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 11.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 188,092 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 23,709 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp owned 0.07% of Sherwin-Williams worth $63,938,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SHW. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in Sherwin-Williams by 1,000.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 99 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. 77.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SHW has been the subject of several recent research reports. 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 note on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $380.00 target price (down previously from $423.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a report on Monday, March 10th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price target on Sherwin-Williams in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $401.13.

Insider Activity at Sherwin-Williams

In related news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,933,009.50. The trade was a 34.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

SHW opened at $341.20 on Wednesday. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 1-year low of $282.09 and a 1-year high of $400.42. The stock has a market cap of $85.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $354.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $364.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.46.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 earnings per share 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 company earned $1.81 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 EPS for the current fiscal 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 paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. This is a boost from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.95%.

Sherwin-Williams 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.