PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) Shares Bought by iA Global Asset Management Inc.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its position in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) by 199.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 18,267 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,171 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in PPG Industries were worth $2,647,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PPG. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in PPG Industries by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,703,066 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $4,159,074,000 after acquiring an additional 4,222,402 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in PPG Industries in the fourth quarter valued at $554,685,000. Putnam Investments LLC grew its position in PPG Industries by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 2,659,974 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $397,799,000 after purchasing an additional 81,200 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,839,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $270,876,000 after buying an additional 496,998 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 30.9% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,768,094 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $264,424,000 after buying an additional 417,145 shares during the period. 81.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded PPG Industries from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $150.00 to $163.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $145.00 to $144.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of PPG Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of PPG Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on PPG Industries from $140.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $151.08.

PPG Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PPG traded down $3.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $122.62. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 601,828 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,656,049. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $128.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $135.08. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $28.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.26. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $120.32 and a 1-year high of $151.16.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $4.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.93 billion. PPG Industries had a net margin of 7.98% and a return on equity of 23.57%. PPG Industries’s quarterly revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.25 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 8.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPG Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $0.68 per share. This is a boost from PPG Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 12th. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. PPG Industries’s payout ratio is presently 43.92%.

PPG Industries announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, April 18th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to buy up to 8.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at PPG Industries

In other news, CEO Timothy M. Knavish purchased 2,061 shares of PPG Industries stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $133.24 per share, with a total value of $274,607.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,833 shares in the company, valued at $4,774,388.92. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.