Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stake in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. trimmed its stake in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) by 92.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,875 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 192,843 shares during the quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in PPG Industries were worth $2,016,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in PPG Industries in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 465.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 243 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 81.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PPG Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PPG opened at $114.13 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $120.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $123.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.13, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.23. PPG Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $110.20 and a one year high of $145.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.04). PPG Industries had a return on equity of 23.78% and a net margin of 6.41%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 7.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPG Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp cut shares of PPG Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. StockNews.com cut shares of PPG Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $155.00 target price (down previously from $160.00) on shares of PPG Industries in a report on Monday, October 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PPG Industries presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.46.

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.