Handelsbanken Fonder AB Cuts Stake in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lowered its position in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG - Free Report) by 8.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 110,251 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 10,313 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in PPG Industries were worth $12,056,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in PPG Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in PPG Industries in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in PPG Industries in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Human Investing LLC acquired a new stake in PPG Industries in the 4th quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in PPG Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $48,000. Institutional investors own 81.86% of the company's stock.

PPG Industries Trading Down 5.2%

Shares of PPG Industries stock traded down $5.78 during trading on Friday, reaching $106.25. 2,499,615 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,827,508. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 1 year low of $90.24 and a 1 year high of $137.24. The firm has a market cap of $24.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.17. The stock's fifty day moving average is $107.39 and its 200 day moving average is $113.62.

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

PPG Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were given a dividend of $0.68 per share. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. PPG Industries's payout ratio is 58.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on PPG shares. Argus downgraded shares of PPG Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Fermium Researc upgraded shares of PPG Industries to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Bank of America restated a "neutral" rating and set a $126.00 price target (down from $143.00) on shares of PPG Industries in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on PPG Industries from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on PPG Industries from $110.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PPG Industries presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $129.83.

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.