PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) Stake Raised by Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd

Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd increased its holdings in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) by 425.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,100 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,700 shares during the period. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in PPG Industries were worth $251,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its position in PPG Industries by 138.9% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 3,196,951 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $381,876,000 after purchasing an additional 1,858,895 shares during the last quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP acquired a new position in PPG Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $107,850,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in PPG Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $82,071,000. State Street Corp increased its position in PPG Industries by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,717,499 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,552,100,000 after purchasing an additional 491,774 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,977,010 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,189,095,000 after acquiring an additional 485,597 shares during the last quarter. 81.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PPG Industries Price Performance

Shares of PPG stock opened at $113.65 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $116.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $122.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 12 month low of $109.15 and a 12 month high of $145.61. The company has a market capitalization of $25.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.22.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

PPG Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were given a $0.68 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PPG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their price objective on PPG Industries from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. StockNews.com lowered PPG Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on PPG Industries from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered PPG Industries from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $115.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on PPG Industries from $128.00 to $120.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $138.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Timothy M. Knavish sold 4,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.35, for a total transaction of $568,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,833 shares in the company, valued at $4,240,835.55. This trade represents a 11.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.