Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Has $8.25 Million Stock Holdings in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 62,296 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,037 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in PPG Industries were worth $8,252,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PPG. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in PPG Industries during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 465.1% during the third quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 243 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of PPG Industries during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hara Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of PPG Industries in the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in PPG Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on PPG shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of PPG Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. KeyCorp cut shares of PPG Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on PPG Industries from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on PPG Industries from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on PPG Industries from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Anne M. Foulkes sold 1,985 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.80, for a total transaction of $249,713.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 13,454 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,692,513.20. This represents a 12.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

PPG Industries Stock Performance

NYSE PPG opened at $113.30 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.58. The company has a market capitalization of $26.29 billion, a PE ratio of 17.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.24. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $113.14 and a 52-week high of $147.76. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $122.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.05.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.15 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $4.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.66 billion. PPG Industries had a net margin of 8.24% and a return on equity of 23.63%. PPG Industries’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.07 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 8.18 EPS for the current year.

PPG Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.11%.

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.