Sherwin-Williams (SHW) Tops Q4 Earnings Estimates

Core Viewpoint - Sherwin-Williams reported quarterly earnings of $2.09 per share, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.07 per share, and showing an increase from $1.81 per share a year ago, indicating a positive earnings surprise of 0.97% [1] Financial Performance - The company posted revenues of $5.3 billion for the quarter ended December 2024, slightly missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.23%, but showing a year-over-year increase from $5.25 billion [2] - Over the last four quarters, Sherwin-Williams has surpassed consensus EPS estimates two times, but has not beaten consensus revenue estimates during the same period [2] Stock Performance - Sherwin-Williams shares have increased approximately 6% since the beginning of the year, outperforming the S&P 500's gain of 2.7% [3] - The stock's immediate price movement will largely depend on management's commentary during the earnings call [3] Future Outlook - The current consensus EPS estimate for the upcoming quarter is $2.21 on revenues of $5.39 billion, and for the current fiscal year, it is $12.36 on revenues of $23.78 billion [7] - The estimate revisions trend for Sherwin-Williams is currently unfavorable, resulting in a Zacks Rank 4 (Sell), indicating expected underperformance in the near future [6] Industry Context - The Chemical - Specialty industry, to which Sherwin-Williams belongs, is currently ranked in the bottom 14% of over 250 Zacks industries, suggesting potential challenges ahead [8] - The performance of Sherwin-Williams may be influenced by the overall outlook for the industry [8]