Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) Rating Increased to Buy at Jefferies Financial Group

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW – Get Rating) was upgraded by research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, The Fly reports. The brokerage presently has a $275.00 price objective on the specialty chemicals company’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $240.00. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective points to a potential upside of 21.41% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on SHW. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $300.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 27th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Sherwin-Williams from $270.00 to $251.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $260.00 to $265.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 27th. Barclays raised their price objective on Sherwin-Williams from $220.00 to $240.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 27th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on Sherwin-Williams in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Sherwin-Williams has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $258.74.

Sherwin-Williams Price Performance

Sherwin-Williams stock opened at $226.51 on Wednesday. Sherwin-Williams has a 1 year low of $195.24 and a 1 year high of $278.31. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $226.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $233.10. The company has a market cap of $58.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.79, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.03, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 25th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.20. Sherwin-Williams had a net margin of 9.41% and a return on equity of 86.29%. The firm had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.61 earnings per share. Sherwin-Williams’s revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Sherwin-Williams will post 8.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams by 1,716.7% in the 1st quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 109 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Standard Family Office LLC bought a new stake in Sherwin-Williams in the third quarter worth $26,000. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Sherwin-Williams during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. RFP Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Sherwin-Williams during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Sherwin-Williams in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Sherwin-Williams

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The Sherwin-Williams Co engages in the development, manufacture, distribution, and sale of paint and coatings. It operates through the following segments: America Group, Consumer Brands Group, and Performance Coating Group. The America Group segment manages the exclusive outlets for Sherwin-Williams branded paints, stains, supplies, equipment, and floor coverings.