Sherwin expands in Europe

Article Excerpt

SHERWIN-WILLIAMS CO. $303 is a still hold. The company (New York symbol SHW; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 261.9 million; Market cap: $79.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 4.1; Dividend yield: 0.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; www.sherwin-williams.com) is buying the European industrial coatings business of Sika AG. Based in Germany, it makes coatings that protect industrial structures such as bridges, pipelines and oil tanks from corrosion. The company has not yet said how much it is paying, but the new operations will add $82 million to Sherwin’s annual sales of $19.6 billion. It expects to complete the purchase in early 2022. The stock has gained 34% in the past year, as the COVID-19 pandemic spurred demand for Sherwin’s paints for home improvement projects. However, the stock seems expensive at 32.3 times the $9.39 a share that the company will likely earn in 2021. Sherwin-Williams is a hold. hold…