PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) Raised to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning.

PPG has been the topic of a number of other research reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of PPG Industries from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $160.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of PPG Industries from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $160.00 to $155.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $156.00 to $141.00 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $155.47.

PPG Industries Stock Down 1.3 %

NYSE:PPG opened at $129.00 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.79, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.28. PPG Industries has a 1-year low of $120.32 and a 1-year high of $152.89. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $138.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $138.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86. The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.43 billion. PPG Industries had a net margin of 7.74% and a return on equity of 22.98%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.82 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that PPG Industries will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

PPG Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. PPG Industries’s payout ratio is 43.92%.

PPG Industries declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program 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 repurchase up to 8.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at PPG Industries

In other news, CFO Vincent J. Morales sold 3,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,008,192.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PPG Industries

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PPG. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of PPG Industries in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in PPG Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its position in PPG Industries by 588.5% during the fourth quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 179 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in PPG Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in PPG Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. 81.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.