Procyon Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Procyon Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 13.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,879 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 441 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $898,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Hawaiian Bank grew its position in Sherwin-Williams by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 7,559 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,358,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Hutner Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Sherwin-Williams by 1.8% during the second quarter. Hutner Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,062 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $548,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC grew its position in Sherwin-Williams by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC now owns 848 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $263,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Midwest Financial Group LLC grew its position in Sherwin-Williams by 1.6% during the third quarter. Midwest Financial Group LLC now owns 2,540 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $648,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Montag A & Associates Inc. grew its position in Sherwin-Williams by 2.2% during the third quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 1,825 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $465,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. 77.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

Sherwin-Williams stock traded down $0.71 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $346.18. 102,110 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,415,203. The stock has a market cap of $88.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.83. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52-week low of $211.91 and a 52-week high of $347.71. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $321.19 and its 200 day moving average is $289.39.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $5.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.23 billion. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 10.36% and a return on equity of 74.72%. The business’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.89 EPS. Analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 11.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $0.715 per share. This is an increase from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.61. This represents a $2.86 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on SHW. UBS Group raised shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $312.00 to $402.00 in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $285.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $295.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $300.00 price target (up from $270.00) on shares of Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sherwin-Williams currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $320.39.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sherwin-Williams

In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Justin T. Binns sold 1,563 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $338.87, for a total transaction of $529,653.81. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 14,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,935,302.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Todd D. Rea sold 2,449 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.54, for a total value of $767,859.46. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,925,014.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Justin T. Binns sold 1,563 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.87, for a total transaction of $529,653.81. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 14,564 shares in the company, valued at $4,935,302.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 32,050 shares of company stock worth $10,340,237. 0.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.