PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) Shares Sold by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Key Points

• Avantax Advisory Services Inc. reduced its holdings in PPG Industries by 34.0%, now owning 12,684 shares valued at approximately $1.39 million.
• Analysts have recently increased their target prices for PPG Industries, with Deutsche Bank setting a new target of $140.00, indicating a positive outlook on the stock.
• PPG Industries announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.71 per share, up from $0.68, representing an annualized yield of 2.7%.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG - Free Report) by 34.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,684 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 6,538 shares during the quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in PPG Industries were worth $1,387,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PPG. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of PPG Industries in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. CVA Family Office LLC lifted its position in PPG Industries by 70.6% in the first quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 273 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in PPG Industries by 37.1% in the first quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 373 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 88.0% during the first quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 393 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional acquired a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the first quarter worth about $44,000. 81.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PPG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on PPG Industries from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on PPG Industries from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 13th. Bank of America reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $126.00 price target (down previously from $143.00) on shares of PPG Industries in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $129.45.

PPG Industries Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of PPG Industries stock opened at $105.40 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $23.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.16. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $90.24 and a 52-week high of $137.24. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $113.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $111.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.22. The company had revenue of $4.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.16 billion. PPG Industries had a return on equity of 24.18% and a net margin of 6.25%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.50 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

PPG Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 11th will be given a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 11th. This is a positive change from PPG Industries's previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. PPG Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.40%.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PPG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.