Webster Bank N. A. Sells 130 Shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)

Webster Bank N. A. cut its position in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) by 26.4% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 362 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 130 shares during the quarter. Webster Bank N. A.’s holdings in PPG Industries were worth $52,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of PPG Industries by 17.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 24,480,664 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,661,083,000 after buying an additional 3,600,558 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in PPG Industries in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $554,685,000. Morgan Stanley increased its position in PPG Industries by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,102,602 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $402,718,000 after acquiring an additional 341,977 shares during the period. Putnam Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 2,659,974 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $397,799,000 after purchasing an additional 81,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 37.0% in 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 purchasing an additional 496,998 shares during the last quarter. 81.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPG Industries Stock Up 0.8 %

PPG Industries stock traded up $0.99 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $125.89. The stock had a trading volume of 2,585,591 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,493,101. The company has a market capitalization of $29.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.27, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $130.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $138.45. PPG Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $120.32 and a one year high of $152.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86. PPG Industries had a return on equity of 22.98% and a net margin of 7.74%. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.82 EPS. PPG Industries’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 8.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPG Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 9th. PPG Industries’s payout ratio is currently 43.92%.

PPG Industries declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, April 18th that permits the company to buyback $2.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to repurchase up to 8.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on PPG. StockNews.com raised shares of PPG Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $168.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $170.00 to $161.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of PPG Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $167.00 to $164.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.47.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Timothy M. Knavish bought 2,061 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $133.24 per share, for a total transaction of $274,607.64. Following the purchase, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

PPG Industries 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.