Securian Asset Management Inc. Sells 411 Shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Securian Asset Management Inc. lowered its position in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,420 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 411 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $4,222,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of SHW. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 18.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,482,662 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,474,238,000 after purchasing an additional 999,164 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Sherwin-Williams by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,733,131 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,799,196,000 after buying an additional 58,463 shares during the period. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd grew its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd now owns 2,171,802 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $738,261,000 after acquiring an additional 114,591 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Sherwin-Williams by 12.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,724,746 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $586,293,000 after acquiring an additional 187,724 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,472,073 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $500,402,000 after acquiring an additional 50,983 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.67% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was 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 directly owns 5,365 shares in the company, valued at $1,933,009.50. This trade represents a 34.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

Shares of SHW opened at $350.21 on Thursday. 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 firm has a market cap of $88.08 billion, a PE ratio of 33.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.23. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 12 month low of $282.09 and a 12 month high of $400.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $353.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $365.85.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 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 firm earned $1.81 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This is a positive change from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. Sherwin-Williams’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Berenberg Bank raised Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $321.00 to $420.00 in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird set a $370.00 price target on Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $438.00 to $415.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $401.13.

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.