Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC Invests $1.79 Million in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)

Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 15,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $1,792,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in PPG Industries in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new position in shares of PPG Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in PPG Industries during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in PPG Industries during the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in PPG Industries during the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.86% of the company's stock.

PPG Industries Price Performance

NYSE:PPG traded up $0.93 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $113.99. The stock had a trading volume of 3,275,448 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,820,431. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $106.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $115.20. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $90.24 and a one year high of $137.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.20.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $3.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.67 billion. PPG Industries had a net margin of 6.41% and a return on equity of 23.78%. The business's revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.87 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPG Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. PPG Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PPG has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on PPG Industries from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Seaport Res Ptn cut PPG Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on PPG Industries from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on PPG Industries from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on PPG Industries from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $128.42.

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.