Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 13,874 Shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its position in shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) by 36.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,291 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 13,874 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in PPG Industries were worth $3,058,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in PPG Industries during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of PPG Industries during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PPG Industries during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. 81.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PPG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on PPG Industries from $165.00 to $161.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $152.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $145.00 to $144.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $140.00 to $139.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $151.08.

PPG Industries Price Performance

Shares of PPG opened at $134.56 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $31.39 billion, a PE ratio of 22.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.26. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $118.07 and a 1-year high of $151.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $125.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $130.35.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $4.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.93 billion. PPG Industries had a return on equity of 23.57% and a net margin of 7.98%. PPG Industries’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.25 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 8.25 EPS for the current year.

PPG Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. This is a boost from PPG Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.95%.

PPG Industries 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.