PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) Shares Sold by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) by 2.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 86,296 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 2,223 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in PPG Industries were worth $12,503,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings 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 buying an additional 4,222,402 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in PPG Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $554,685,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in PPG Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $74,492,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted 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 worth $270,876,000 after purchasing an additional 496,998 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 30.9% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,768,094 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $264,424,000 after buying an additional 417,145 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on PPG shares. KeyCorp decreased their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $162.00 to $153.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded PPG Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $152.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised PPG Industries from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $150.00 to $163.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on PPG Industries from $145.00 to $144.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PPG Industries has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.08.

Insider Transactions at PPG Industries

In other news, CEO Timothy M. Knavish bought 2,061 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was bought at an average price of $133.24 per share, for a total transaction 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

PPG Industries Stock Up 1.3 %

PPG Industries stock traded up $1.61 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $127.55. 1,579,781 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,561,094. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $128.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $135.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.49 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The firm has a market cap of $29.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 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 issued its quarterly earnings results 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. PPG Industries had a return on equity of 23.57% and a net margin of 7.98%. The firm had revenue of $4.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.25 earnings per share. PPG Industries’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 8.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPG Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 12th will be paid a $0.68 dividend. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 12th. This is a positive change from PPG Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 43.92%.

PPG Industries announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, April 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 8.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.