Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Raises Holdings in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) by 31.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,039 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,458 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in PPG Industries were worth $3,445,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PPG. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in PPG Industries during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted 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 buying an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PPG Industries in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PPG Industries during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.86% of the company’s stock.

PPG Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PPG opened at $132.92 on Monday. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 12 month low of $120.32 and a 12 month high of $152.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $138.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $139.02.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.86. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.43 billion. PPG Industries had a return on equity of 22.98% and a net margin of 7.74%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.82 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPG Industries declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, April 18th that permits the company to buyback $2.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 8.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

PPG Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Vincent J. Morales sold 3,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.94, for a total transaction of $479,196.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 28,439 shares in the company, valued at $4,008,192.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of PPG Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of PPG Industries in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective 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. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on PPG Industries from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised PPG Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.47.

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.