Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on SHW. KeyCorp reaffirmed a “sector weight” rating on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Monday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $360.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barclays upped their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $430.00 to $420.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $396.47.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

SHW opened at $394.00 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.83. Sherwin-Williams has a 52-week low of $272.34 and a 52-week high of $400.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.23 billion, a PE ratio of 39.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.17. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $378.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $345.96.

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

Insider Activity

In other Sherwin-Williams news, CFO Allen J. Mistysyn sold 14,520 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 63,520 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,301,041.60. This represents a 18.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Mary L. Garceau sold 15,770 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $397.92, for a total value of $6,275,198.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 29,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,621,253.60. This represents a 35.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 32,855 shares of company stock valued at $12,572,756 over the last ninety days. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 88.9% in the third quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 102.3% in the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 89 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in Sherwin-Williams by 136.4% in the second quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 104 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the third quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

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.