Direct Registration For Shareholders of The Sherwin-Williams ...

DirectRegistrationFor Shareholders ofThe Sherwin-Williams CompanyCommon StockA convenient service forholding and tracking yourSherwin-Williams sharesWhat is Direct Registration?The Direct Registration System (“DRS”)allows your Sherwin-Williams shares to beissued or transferred electronically withoutrequiring the issuance of a paper stockcertificate. Instead of receiving a paperstock certificate, your Sherwin-Williamsshares are held in your name and trackedelectronically (in book-entry form) onSherwin-Williams’ records, which aremaintained by The Bank of New York, ourTransfer Agent and Registrar.Holding your shares in DRS relieves youfrom the worry and responsibility ofkeeping track of stock certificates. DRSshares cannot be lost thus avoiding thecost and effort involved in replacing lostcertificates. You retain full ownership ofyour shares as well as all the traditionalvoting rights and privileges of being adirect stockholder.Can I receive a paper stock certificatefor my DRS shares?Yes. You may at anytime request that apaper stock certificate be issued for aportion or all of your Sherwin-Williamsshares by calling The Bank of New Yorktoll-free at 1-866-537-8703.Are there any costs for holding DRSshares?No. Shareholders are not charged any feesto own their shares in DRS form.Can shares which are in certificateform be converted to DRS shares?Generally, yes. Certificated shares may beconverted to DRS shares at anytime. Justcall The Bank of New York toll-free at 1-866-537-8703 for further instructions. Ifyou send a stock certificate to us, pleasedo not sign the stock certificate. Werecommend that you send the certificate(s)via registered mail, return receiptrequested and insured for 2% of the valueof the shares.Please note that the above does not applyto certificated shares that are subject torestrictions on transfer under the U.S.securities law. If you have any questionsabout whether you hold these types ofshares, please call The Bank of New Yorktoll-free at 1-866-537-8703.If I have shares in certificate form andDRS form, can I combine them?Yes. Please call The Bank of New York forinstructions for moving your shares incertificate form to DRS form. The shares incertificate form will be added to your DRSshare balance.How do I transfer my DRS shares?The requirements for transferring DRSshares are the same as shares in certificateform except that with DRS shares, there isno certificate to surrender. In order totransfer shares you will need to complete aTransfer Instruction Package. Visit TheBank of New York’s Stock Transfer Websiteat www.stockbny.com to download theform or call The Bank of New York toll-freeat 1-866-537-8703 to request one. Priorto submitting a transfer request, you mustobtain a Medallion Guarantee for anytransfer of shares. A Medallion Guaranteeensures that the individual signing therequest for transfer is the owner orauthorized representative. A MedallionGuarantee can be obtained from aparticipating financial institution, includingbanks and brokerage firms.How do I deliver my DRS shares to mybroker?DRS allows you to authorize your broker tosend an electronic instruction to The Bank

of New York to debit DRS shares from youraccount with The Bank of New York anddeliver them electronically to your accountwith your broker. To effect suchtransactions, your broker will need toinclude the following information in itsinstructions, most of which can be found inyour Direct Registration TransactionAdvice: your Direct Registration AccountNumber, your Social Security or TaxpayerIdentification Number, the name on youraccount and the number of DRS shares tobe delivered. The Bank of New York willhonor such requests from any brokerparticipating in DRS. While a broker shouldhave your authorization to debit suchshares from your Direct RegistrationAccount, The Bank of New York will haveno way of verifying if you actuallyauthorized the transaction since theinstruction is coming directly from thebroker. If you prefer, you may alsorequest The Bank of New York to issue acertificate for your DRS shares, which youmay deliver to your broker.Contacting the Transfer AgentThe Bank of New York is the Transfer Agentand Registrar for The Sherwin-WilliamsCompany. You may contact The Bank ofNew York using the following methods:• Call the Bank’s toll-free number:1-866-537-8703• Send an email:sharehowners@bankofny.com• Contact the Bank in writing:The Sherwin-Williams Companyc/o The Bank of New York480 Washington BoulevardJersey City, NJ 07310