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what it is
Sherwin-Williams makes and sells paint, coatings, and supplies through thousands of its own stores.
how it gets paid
Last year Sherwin-Williams made $23.6B in revenue. Paint Stores Group was the main engine at $14.2B, or 60% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 2.1% last year. Management’s 2026 outlook assumes gradual improvement in demand rather than a sharp rebound in housing.
what just happened
Sherwin-Williams finished 2025 with Q4 sales up 5.6% to $5.6B, while EPS matched estimates at $2.23.
At a glance
A balance sheet — strong enough to weather a downturn
90/100 earnings predictability — you can trust these numbers
31.2x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
1.0% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
27.5% return on capital — every dollar works hard here
xvary composite: 73/100 — average
What they do
Sherwin-Williams makes and sells paint, coatings, and supplies through thousands of its own stores.
Sherwin-Williams wins because it controls the shelf and the store. It has more than 4,850 company-owned paint stores, versus rivals that often rely more on third-party retailers. If your contractor already gets credit, delivery, and color matching there, switching costs (starting over with another supplier) get real fast.
How they make money
$23.6B
annual revenue · their business grew +2.1% last year
Paint Stores Group
$14.2B
+4.0%
Consumer Brands Group
$3.2B
1.0%
Performance Coatings Group
$4.8B
+3.0%
Latin America Coatings Group
$1.4B
+9.0%
The products that matter
core architectural paint and coatings
Paint and Coatings
$23.6B revenue · 13.0% net margin
This snapshot does not split the business into cleaner buckets, so the main product card carries the whole story. Sherwin turned $23.6B of paint and coatings revenue into a 13.0% net margin. In human-speak: the category looks plain, the economics do not.
core earnings engine
tools and equipment sold into the same customer base
Application Equipment
not broken out here
The data on this page does not separate equipment revenue, so we are keeping it honest. What matters for you is the attachment logic: when Sherwin sells more than paint to the same pro customer, the relationship gets stickier and the revenue mix gets a little better.
attachment sale
auto and industrial exposure beyond residential repaint
Automotive and Industrial Coatings
demand recovery matters
Management commentary already points to uneven end markets. Housing turnover stayed soft while some industrial and infrastructure lines held up better. If revenue reaches the $25B estimate, these categories need to do part of the lifting. That's the diversification case in one sentence.
cycle buffer
Key numbers
$13.75
fy2027 eps est
$31B
fy2029 rev est
31.2x
trailing p/e
1.0%
dividend yield
Financial health
A
strength
- balance sheet grade A — very strong financial position
- risk rank 2 — safer than 80% of stocks
- price stability 85 / 100
- long-term debt $9.3B (10% of capital)
- net profit margin 14.1% — keeps 14 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 68% — $0.68 profit for every $1 investors have put in
A with balance sheet grade and risk rank standing out. your money faces less risk here than at most public companies.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in SHW 3 years ago → it's now worth $16,330.
The index would have given you $14,540.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
Sherwin-Williams finished 2025 with Q4 sales up 5.6% to $5.6B, while EPS matched estimates at $2.23.
The quarter got help from roughly $165M of sales tied to the Suvinil acquisition. Pre-tax income still rose 4% to $639M even as pre-tax margin slipped to 11.4% from 11.6%.
$5.6B
revenue
$2.23
eps
49.0%
gross margin
the number that mattered
The 5.6% sales growth mattered most because it shows Sherwin-Williams can still grow through a slow housing backdrop, even before a cleaner margin rebound shows up.
-
sherwin-williams ended 2025 with a decent fourth quarter.
-
sales rose 5.6% vs. prior year, to $5.6 billion, including roughly $165 million for the suvinil acquisition (closed in october).end-market demand was uneven, as north american housing turnover remained subdued, though several industrial and infrastructure-related lines were steadier.
-
pre-tax income rose 4%, to $639 million, on higher sales.
-
the pre-tax margin was 11.4%, compared with 11.6% a year earlier.on an adjusted basis, which excludes amortization and other acquisition-related items, earnings improved modestly from the prior-year period.
-
cash generation remained solid, supporting ongoing share repurchases and dividend growth.management’s 2026 outlook assumes gradual improvement in demand rather than a sharp rebound in housing. leadership expects sales to increase at a low-single-digit percentage and has guided to adjusted earnings per share of $11.50 to $11.90, excluding $0.80 per share of acquisition-related amortization. our top-line estimate is generally consistent with that outlook, while our earnings forecast of $12.15 per share sits above management’s range. achieving this figure would likely require firmer contractor backlogs, stabilization in do-it-yourself activity, and some operating leverage as volumes recover looking ahead to 2029-2031, sherwin-williams’ appeal rests on its scale and distribution model. the company’s large network of company-owned stores fosters direct relationships with professional painters, generating repeat repaint business that tends to be steadier than new construction demand. the performance coatings segment broadens exposure to infrastructure, packaging, and industrial markets, reducing reliance on residential trends alone. over the next 3 to 5 years, pricing discipline, manufacturing scale, and consistent capital allocation should allow the company to compound earnings at a reasonable pace.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the main risk is not paint demand in the abstract. it is housing turnover staying weak while the stock keeps pricing in a cleaner recovery.
med
housing activity stays stuck
Management already framed 2026 around gradual improvement rather than a sharp rebound. Sherwin's pro-painter channel is durable, but it still depends on jobs moving through the system.
If adjusted EPS lands near $11.50 instead of this page's $12.15 estimate, today's valuation gets harder to defend fast.
med
margin pressure returns before volume does
This is a coatings business, so raw materials, tariffs, and pricing discipline all hit the same income statement. The latest update already showed pre-tax margin slipping to 11.4% from 11.6% even as sales improved.
You do not need a collapse to hurt the stock. Another small margin giveback would be enough when the multiple is already premium.
med
adjusted numbers and reported numbers drift apart
Recent sales included roughly $165M from the suvinil acquisition, and 2026 adjusted EPS excludes $0.80 per share of acquisition-related amortization. There is also litigation and regulatory exposure in the background.
If integration costs linger or legal expense rises, the clean adjusted story stops matching the messier reported one. Investors usually notice that gap late, then all at once.
559 institutional buyers versus 689 sellers says the big money is cautious, and management's $11.50–$11.90 adjusted EPS guide sits below this page's $12.15 estimate. That gap is the risk summary in one line.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
metric
watch the gap between guidance and estimates
Management guided to $11.50–$11.90 in adjusted 2026 EPS. This page's estimate is $12.15. One of those numbers needs to move, and the stock will care which one.
trend
track housing turnover, not just gallons sold
Sherwin is tied to pro painter activity, and painter activity follows job flow. If turnover stays weak, contractor volumes stay slower for longer even if the brand stays strong.
calendar
next earnings need to show margin stabilization
The latest pre-tax margin was 11.4% versus 11.6% a year earlier. You want that line steady or higher. A premium multiple does not like repeated small slips.
risk
institutional selling needs to stop looking persistent
Institutions were net sellers for two consecutive quarters, with 559 buyers versus 689 sellers in 4q2025. They are not panicking. They are refusing to pay up harder.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
average
momentum score 3 — in human-speak, analysts see a stock waiting for a better catalyst.
safety profile
above average
stability score 2 — safer than roughly 80% of stocks. If you want drama, this is the wrong ticker.
chart momentum
average
technical score 3 — the chart is moving with the market, not leading it.
earnings predictability
90 / 100
Management gives reliable guidance. You usually do not get wild surprises here, which is a gift and a limitation.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net selling for 2 consecutive quarters — 559 buyers vs. 689 sellers in 4q2025. total institutional holdings: 0.2B shares. net selling for 2 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$296
$500
$356
current price
$398
target midpoint · +12% from current · 3-5yr high: $605 (+70% · 15% ann'l return)
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The full deep dive: dcf model, scenario analysis, competitive moat breakdown, and quarterly tracking — everything on this page, taken further.
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