Sherwin-Williams shows record sales
Sherwin-Williams (SHW), based in Cleveland, reported record year sales for 2021 despite battling industry-wide supply chain disruptions.
The company reported consolidated net sales increased 8.6% in the year to a record $19.94 billion, compared with $18.36 billion in previous year. Gross profit was down 1.6%. Q4 net sales increased 6.1% to $4.76 billion over $4.48 billion compared to Q4 last year, profit was down 11.7%.
“Our full year and fourth quarter were marked by industry-wide supply chain disruptions, unprecedented cost inflation and ongoing challenges related to the pandemic,” said Chairman, President and CEO John G. Morikis.
“The 61,000 dedicated employees of Sherwin-Williams refused to use these challenges as an excuse, but rather as an opportunity to get even closer to our customers,” said Morikis.
“We focused on minimizing the impact to their businesses through innovation, value-added services, and differentiated distribution. We delivered full year sales growth of 8.6%, driven by 6% U.S. and Canada same store sales growth and double-digit growth in all industrial end markets.”
In Q4 segments, The Americas Group segment sales increased 3% and profit decreased 28%. The company said Pro demand remained robust, but there were project delays amid raw material availability and COVID related headwinds. The Consumer Brands Group segment sales decreased 7.8%, on lower sales volume.
The Performance Coatings segment sales increased 18.7% due to selling price increases, the firm reported. Regarding Coatings, “Exterior paint sales were up more than interior paint sales,” said Morikis, in an earnings call today.
The Bottom Line: Sherwin-Williams sales for the year moved ahead nearly 9% company-wide for 2021 to nearly $20 billion.
What the CEO said: “While we focused on meeting customer needs, we also mitigated rising costs with pricing actions in all businesses throughout the year. Near term pressure on our margins was significant, but we remain highly confident they will recover just as they have in past cycles, as we grow the business and see commodity costs moderate over time,” said Morikis.
Speaking of growing, the CEO added during a conference call today that the company is planning to open 80-100 new stores in the U.S. this year.
Company info: Click HERE to read the Q4 and full year 2021 financial report from Sherwin-Williams.