PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) Downgraded to “Buy” Rating by StockNews.com

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on PPG Industries from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. KeyCorp lowered shares of PPG Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Citigroup cut their price target on PPG Industries from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on PPG Industries from $138.00 to $136.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, PPG Industries has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.29.

PPG Industries Stock Performance

NYSE:PPG opened at $120.21 on Friday. PPG Industries has a twelve month low of $118.07 and a twelve month high of $150.82. The company has a market capitalization of $27.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $124.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $126.21.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.15 by ($0.02). PPG Industries had a return on equity of 23.63% and a net margin of 8.24%. The company had revenue of $4.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.07 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that PPG Industries will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Anne M. Foulkes sold 1,985 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.80, for a total value of $249,713.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,454 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,692,513.20. The trade was a 12.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PPG Industries

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PPG. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of PPG Industries by 4.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,717,499 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,552,100,000 after buying an additional 491,774 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in PPG Industries by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,977,010 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,189,095,000 after acquiring an additional 485,597 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in PPG Industries by 20.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,197,012 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $276,576,000 after acquiring an additional 368,410 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in PPG Industries by 68.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 873,902 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $115,757,000 after acquiring an additional 354,740 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of PPG Industries by 189.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 426,834 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $56,538,000 after purchasing an additional 279,455 shares during the last quarter. 81.86% of the stock is currently 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.