GFI vs. SHW: Gold Fields vs. Sherwin-Williams Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW) both fall under the Materials industry group, but GFI is classified in Metals & Mining while SHW is classified in Chemicals.

Sherwin-Williams (SHW) trades as ordinary local shares, while Gold Fields (GFI) trades as an ADR — compare with FX exposure, depositary-program fees, and dividend-withholding-tax differences in mind.

Company profile comparison for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW)
Profile Item	GFI	SHW
Name	Gold Fields Ltd. Sponsored ADR	The Sherwin-Williams Company
Country/Region	South Africa	United States
GICS Sector	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry Group	Materials	Materials
GICS Industry	Metals & Mining	Chemicals
GICS Sub-Industry	Gold	Specialty Chemicals
Market Capitalization	34.65 billion USD	83.13 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	March 17, 1980	March 17, 1980
Security Type	ADR	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

GFI

SHW

GSPC

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW)
Metric	GFI	SHW
Total Return (1Y)	9.54%	5.74%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	51.07%	13.18%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	38.08%	2.84%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

GFI

SHW

GSPC

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW)
Metric	GFI	SHW
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	60.41%	29.59%
Beta (5Y)	0.64	1.02
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-56.22%	-42.46%
Avg. Volume (3M)	3.78M	1.72M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

GFI and SHW are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW)
Metric	GFI	SHW
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.09	0.05
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.12	0.08

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Gold Fields (GFI) at 58.68% and Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 63.70% turn shareholders’ equity into profit at rates above their industry benchmark ranges for ROE. That is a strong capital-efficiency signal, though leverage and the equity base still matter.

GFI

Materials industry group

58.68%

GFI: 58.68%
Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

SHW

Materials industry group

63.70%

SHW: 63.70%
Max: 52.88%
Q3: 19.49%
Median: 8.76%
Q1: -3.41%
Min: -32.81%

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their ROE against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Gold Fields (GFI) at 38.66% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 10.74%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

GFI

Materials industry group

38.66%

GFI: 38.66%
Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

SHW

Materials industry group

10.74%

Max: 38.66%
Q3: 15.98%
SHW: 10.74%
Median: 5.28%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: -20.40%

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their net margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Gold Fields (GFI) at 55.00% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 17.56%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

GFI

Materials industry group

55.00%

Max: 66.70%
GFI: 55.00%
Q3: 28.92%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

SHW

Materials industry group

17.56%

Max: 66.70%
Q3: 28.92%
SHW: 17.56%
Median: 12.56%
Q1: 3.28%
Min: -14.07%

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their operating margin against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW)
Metric	GFI	SHW
ROE (TTM)	58.68%	63.70%
ROA (TTM)	28.52%	9.48%
Net Margin (TTM)	38.66%	10.74%
Operating Margin (TTM)	55.00%	17.56%
Gross Margin (TTM)	57.77%	48.60%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Gold Fields (GFI) at 68.24% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 2.06% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for GFI.

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Gold Fields (GFI) at 185.51% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at -2.75% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for GFI.

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW)
Metric	GFI	SHW
Revenue Growth (YoY)	68.24%	2.06%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	26.86%	2.10%
EPS Growth (YoY)	185.51%	-2.75%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	71.58%	9.95%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Gold Fields (GFI) at 1.87 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 0.71 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for SHW.

GFI

Materials industry group

1.87

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
GFI: 1.87
Q1: 1.45
Min: 0.16

SHW

Materials industry group

0.71

Max: 5.96
Q3: 3.30
Median: 2.24
Q1: 1.45
SHW: 0.71
Min: 0.16

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their current ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Gold Fields (GFI) at 0.29 is near its industry mid-range for debt-to-equity ratio, while Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 3.72 sits above its benchmark range, pointing to a heavier debt load relative to equity.

GFI

Materials industry group

0.29

Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
GFI: 0.29
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

SHW

Materials industry group

3.72

SHW: 3.72
Max: 1.98
Q3: 0.89
Median: 0.47
Q1: 0.13
Min: 0.00

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW)
Metric	GFI	SHW
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.87	0.71
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.29	3.72
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.06	3.04

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 0.91% pays an industry-typical yield; Gold Fields (GFI) at 5.65% is above its entire peer range — the higher number, but one that calls for a look at payout sustainability before treating it as an advantage.

GFI

Materials industry group

5.65%

GFI: 5.65%
Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

SHW

Materials industry group

0.91%

Max: 4.52%
Q3: 1.85%
SHW: 0.91%
Median: 0.38%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Gold Fields (GFI) at 31.81% and Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 29.35% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

GFI

Materials industry group

31.81%

Max: 83.62%
Q3: 41.37%
GFI: 31.81%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

SHW

Materials industry group

29.35%

Max: 83.62%
Q3: 41.37%
SHW: 29.35%
Median: 9.54%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW)
Metric	GFI	SHW
Dividend Yield (TTM)	5.65%	0.91%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	31.81%	29.35%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Gold Fields (GFI) at 8.03 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 31.66 is closer to its industry’s usual earnings multiple — a discount for GFI, though growth and earnings durability still matter.

GFI

Materials industry group

8.03

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
GFI: 8.03
Min: 3.93

SHW

Materials industry group

31.66

Max: 59.00
Q3: 32.93
SHW: 31.66
Median: 18.82
Q1: 11.96
Min: 3.93

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Gold Fields (GFI) at 3.05 and Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 3.34 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

GFI

Materials industry group

3.05

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
GFI: 3.05
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

SHW

Materials industry group

3.34

Max: 9.62
Q3: 4.34
SHW: 3.34
Median: 1.87
Q1: 0.73
Min: 0.00

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Measured against book value, both Gold Fields (GFI) at 7.78 and Sherwin-Williams (SHW) at 20.78 look expensive — each P/B ratio sits above its industry’s benchmark range.

GFI

Materials industry group

7.78

GFI: 7.78
Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

SHW

Materials industry group

20.78

SHW: 20.78
Max: 6.59
Q3: 3.55
Median: 2.08
Q1: 1.26
Min: -0.17

Gold Fields (GFI) vs. Sherwin-Williams (SHW): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Materials industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Gold Fields (GFI) and Sherwin-Williams (SHW)
Metric	GFI	SHW
P/E Ratio (TTM)	8.03	31.66
P/S Ratio (TTM)	3.05	3.34
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	7.78	20.78
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	12.05%	2.98%