Synovus Financial Corp Reduces Holdings in The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW)

Synovus Financial Corp decreased its stake in shares of The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE:SHW) by 19.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,287 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 2,442 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp’s holdings in Sherwin-Williams were worth $3,497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SHW. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. WR Wealth Planners LLC raised its holdings in Sherwin-Williams by 41.7% in the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 119 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. 77.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Sherwin-Williams news, insider Colin M. Davie sold 2,799 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.30, for a total transaction of $1,008,479.70. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Sherwin-Williams Stock Performance

Shares of SHW stock opened at $341.13 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $347.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $359.91. The Sherwin-Williams Company has a 52 week low of $282.09 and a 52 week high of $400.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $85.80 billion, a PE ratio of 32.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.26.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm posted $1.81 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Sherwin-Williams Company will post 12 earnings per share for the current year.

Sherwin-Williams Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This is an increase from Sherwin-Williams’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Sherwin-Williams’s payout ratio is currently 29.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SHW has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $450.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Sherwin-Williams from $435.00 to $408.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $380.00 to $350.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Berenberg Bank raised Sherwin-Williams from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $321.00 to $420.00 in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Sherwin-Williams from $423.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Sherwin-Williams presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $393.31.

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.