Norris Perne & French LLP MI Makes New Investment in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)

Norris Perne & French LLP MI purchased a new position in shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,488 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $216,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 17.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,480,664 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,661,083,000 after purchasing an additional 3,600,558 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of PPG Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $554,685,000. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,102,602 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $402,718,000 after purchasing an additional 341,977 shares during the period. Putnam Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 2,659,974 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $397,799,000 after purchasing an additional 81,200 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 37.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,839,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $270,876,000 after purchasing an additional 496,998 shares during the period. 81.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PPG Industries Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PPG opened at $125.89 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $130.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $138.40. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 12-month low of $120.32 and a 12-month high of $152.89. The firm has a market cap of $29.52 billion, a PE ratio of 21.27, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86. PPG Industries had a net margin of 7.74% and a return on equity of 22.98%. The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.82 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 8.44 earnings per share for the current year.

PPG Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 43.92%.

PPG Industries announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, April 18th that permits the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to reacquire up to 8.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PPG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $156.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price 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. Evercore ISI cut shares of PPG Industries from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $152.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $167.00 to $164.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $149.00 to $148.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.47.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Timothy M. Knavish purchased 2,061 shares of PPG Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $133.24 per share, for a total transaction of $274,607.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,774,388.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

PPG Industries Company Profile

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.