PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) Stock Rating Lowered by Evercore ISI

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) was downgraded by equities researchers at Evercore ISI from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $152.00 target price on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. Evercore ISI’s price objective points to a potential upside of 16.56% from the company’s current price.

PPG has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Vertical Research raised shares of PPG Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of PPG Industries in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $156.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on PPG Industries from $158.00 to $156.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of PPG Industries in a research note on Friday, January 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PPG Industries has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $155.50.

PPG Industries Stock Down 0.6 %

PPG opened at $130.40 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $140.00 and a 200-day moving average of $138.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. PPG Industries has a 1-year low of $120.32 and a 1-year high of $152.89.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86. The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.43 billion. PPG Industries had a net margin of 7.74% and a return on equity of 23.13%. The business’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.82 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that PPG Industries will post 8.46 earnings per share for the current year.

PPG Industries declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, April 18th that allows the company to repurchase $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 8.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at PPG Industries

In related news, CFO Vincent J. Morales sold 3,400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.94, for a total value of $479,196.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 28,439 shares in the company, valued at $4,008,192.66. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PPG Industries

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in PPG Industries by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 11,004 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,646,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in PPG Industries by 11.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 358,333 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $46,512,000 after purchasing an additional 35,571 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in PPG Industries by 137.5% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 34,937 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,224,000 after purchasing an additional 20,226 shares during the period. Nomura Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in PPG Industries by 2.3% in the third quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 8,479 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,101,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Counselors Inc. raised its holdings in PPG Industries by 6.4% in the third quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 1,883 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $244,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. 81.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About PPG Industries

PPG Industries, Inc manufactures and distributes paints, coatings, and specialty materials in the United States, Canada, the Asia Pacific, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through two segments, Performance Coatings and Industrial Coatings. The Performance Coatings segment offers coatings, solvents, adhesives, sealants, sundries, and software for automotive and commercial transport/fleet repair and refurbishing, light industrial coatings, and specialty coatings for signs; wood stains; paints, thermoplastics, pavement marking products, and other advanced technologies for pavement marking for government, commercial infrastructure, painting, and maintenance contractors; and coatings, sealants, transparencies, transparent armor, adhesives, engineered materials, and packaging and chemical management services for commercial, military, regional jet, and general aviation aircraft.