Sherwin-Williams sees quarterly sales growth on price hikes amid Middle East conflict

Sherwin-Williams' net sales rose nearly 7% to $5.66 billion in the first quarter.

Paintmaker Sherwin-Williams Tuesday forecast mid-single-digit sales growth for the second quarter, banking on price increases and contributions from recent acquisitions, even as demand remained soft across most end markets.

The Middle East conflict, which led to supply chain disruptions, has pushed up costs for raw materials, energy and logistics, prompting companies such as Sherwin-Williams to raise product prices to protect their margins.

“In this environment, we continue to focus on securing incremental volume, balanced with appropriate and decisive pricing and cost-out actions to maintain the products, services and supply solutions that drive productivity and profitability for our customers,” CEO Heidi Petz said.

“Specifically, we are continuing to implement targeted price increases by end market and geography across all of our businesses.”

The Ohio-based company’s shares were up about 3 per cent in premarket trading following the results.

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The company also beat first-quarter profit estimates, with its paint stores unit posting a 3.7 per cent rise in sales amid higher prices.

Quarterly sales at its consumer brands unit rose 19.2 per cent from a year ago, posting the highest percentage gain, on the back of the Suvinil deal and strength in Europe.

Sherwin-Williams’ net sales rose nearly 7 per cent to $5.66 billion in the first quarter, topping average analysts’ estimate of $5.56 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Analysts expect its second-quarter net sales to be $6.58 billion.

The company posted adjusted profit of $2.35 per share for the three months ended March 31, compared with estimates of $2.26 per share.

(Reporting by Dharna Bafna in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)