PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) Sets New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $117.86 and last traded at $118.05, with a volume of 286921 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $119.45.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on PPG. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on PPG Industries from $138.00 to $136.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of PPG Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, KeyCorp downgraded PPG Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.29.

PPG Industries Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $26.51 billion, a PE ratio of 18.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The business’s fifty day moving average is $123.33 and its 200-day moving average is $125.61.

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). PPG Industries had a net margin of 8.24% and a return on equity of 23.63%. The firm had revenue of $4.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.07 EPS. PPG Industries’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 8.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPG Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 12th were issued a $0.68 dividend. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 12th. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.11%.

Insider Activity at PPG Industries

In other PPG Industries news, VP Anne M. Foulkes sold 1,985 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 owns 13,454 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,692,513.20. The trade was a 12.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PPG Industries

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Insight Folios Inc boosted its stake in PPG Industries by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Insight Folios Inc now owns 2,217 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $294,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 0.4% in the second quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 20,244 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,549,000 after buying an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT boosted its position in shares of PPG Industries by 1.7% in the second quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 5,310 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $669,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC grew its stake in PPG Industries by 1.1% during the third quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC now owns 8,344 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,105,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment increased its holdings in PPG Industries by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 7,750 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,027,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. 81.86% of the stock is owned by 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.