Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Grows Stake in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in PPG Industries by 72.5%, acquiring an additional 3,443 shares, bringing its total holdings to 8,194 shares valued at approximately $896,000.
• PPG Industries recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.71, scheduled for payment on September 12th, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 2.7%.
• Analysts have set a consensus price target of $129.82 for PPG Industries, with ratings ranging from "hold" to "strong buy" across various firms.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG - Free Report) by 72.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,194 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 3,443 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in PPG Industries were worth $896,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of PPG. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in PPG Industries by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,075 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $487,000 after acquiring an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC boosted its holdings in PPG Industries by 261.6% during the fourth quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 140,641 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $16,800,000 after purchasing an additional 101,742 shares during the last quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC boosted its holdings in PPG Industries by 676.5% during the fourth quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 33,919 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $4,052,000 after purchasing an additional 29,551 shares during the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. grew its position in PPG Industries by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 1,772 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in PPG Industries by 14.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 398,614 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $47,614,000 after buying an additional 51,754 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.86% of the company's stock.

PPG Industries Stock Performance

PPG Industries stock traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $105.82. The stock had a trading volume of 2,475,147 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,090,359. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.88 billion, a PE ratio of 23.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.17. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 12 month low of $90.24 and a 12 month high of $137.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $112.83 and its 200 day moving average price is $111.55.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.22. The firm had revenue of $4.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.16 billion. PPG Industries had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 23.85%. The company's revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.50 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPG Industries Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be issued a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 11th. This is an increase from PPG Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. PPG Industries's dividend payout ratio is 61.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PPG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho upped their target price on PPG Industries from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on PPG Industries from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on PPG Industries from $115.00 to $105.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on PPG Industries from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Fermium Researc upgraded shares of PPG Industries to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Nine investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, PPG Industries has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $129.82.

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.