Citigroup Trims PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) Target Price to $144.00

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) had its target price reduced by Citigroup from $145.00 to $144.00 in a research report released on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the specialty chemicals company’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on PPG Industries from $160.00 to $155.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Seaport Res Ptn raised PPG Industries from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on PPG Industries from $165.00 to $161.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on PPG Industries from $156.00 to $141.00 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised PPG Industries from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $151.08.

PPG Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PPG opened at $125.24 on Monday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $129.10 and its 200 day moving average is $135.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.49. The company has a market capitalization of $29.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.26. PPG Industries has a fifty-two week low of $120.32 and a fifty-two week high of $151.16.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.02. PPG Industries had a return on equity of 23.57% and a net margin of 7.98%. The business had revenue of $4.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.25 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that PPG Industries will post 8.26 earnings per share for the current year.

PPG Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 12th. This is an increase from PPG Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.92%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Timothy M. Knavish purchased 2,061 shares of PPG Industries stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $133.24 per share, for a total transaction of $274,607.64. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,774,388.92. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PPG. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 17.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,703,066 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $4,159,074,000 after buying an additional 4,222,402 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of PPG Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $554,685,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 4,484.1% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 723,690 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $108,228,000 after buying an additional 707,903 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of PPG Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $74,492,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 37.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,839,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $270,876,000 after buying an additional 496,998 shares during the period. 81.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.