PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Meets Expectations

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG - Get Free Report) released its earnings results on Thursday. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.86, Yahoo Finance reports. PPG Industries had a return on equity of 23.51% and a net margin of 6.96%. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.43 billion. PPG Industries's revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.82 EPS.

PPG Industries Price Performance

PPG stock traded up $0.15 during trading on Thursday, hitting $135.11. 2,298,130 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,733,392. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $140.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $138.87. PPG Industries has a 52 week low of $120.32 and a 52 week high of $152.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 1.28.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on PPG shares. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $156.00 target price (down previously from $173.00) on shares of PPG Industries in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Vertical Research raised PPG Industries from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on PPG Industries from $158.00 to $156.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on PPG Industries from $167.00 to $164.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of PPG Industries from $170.00 to $161.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $158.40.

Insider Transactions at PPG Industries

In other PPG Industries news, CFO Vincent J. Morales sold 3,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.94, for a total transaction of $479,196.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 28,439 shares in the company, valued at $4,008,192.66. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PPG Industries

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 51.9% during the first quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 5,991 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $797,000 after purchasing an additional 2,048 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in shares of PPG Industries by 14.7% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 23,667 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $3,099,000 after acquiring an additional 3,025 shares during the period. Prudential PLC bought a new position in shares of PPG Industries in the 1st quarter worth $619,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,180,199 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,645,019,000 after purchasing an additional 252,358 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. boosted its position in PPG Industries by 7.1% during the first quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 19,480 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,553,000 after purchasing an additional 1,283 shares in the last quarter. 81.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About PPG Industries

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.