Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA Makes New Investment in PPG Industries, Inc. $PPG

Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA purchased a new position in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 7,292 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $779,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp raised its position in PPG Industries by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,829,677 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,314,529,000 after purchasing an additional 565,523 shares in the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of PPG Industries by 5.4% during the first quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 7,478,646 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $799,318,000 after buying an additional 379,879 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 48.9% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 6,990,595 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $716,256,000 after buying an additional 2,295,118 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in PPG Industries by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 6,290,622 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $644,537,000 after acquiring an additional 26,793 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in PPG Industries by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,809,127 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $592,859,000 after acquiring an additional 135,529 shares during the last quarter. 81.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPG Industries Trading Up 2.3%

NYSE PPG opened at $118.61 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.05. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $93.39 and a 52-week high of $133.43. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $116.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $113.44.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.05. PPG Industries had a net margin of 9.83% and a return on equity of 21.68%. The company had revenue of $3.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.72 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 7.93 EPS for the current year.

PPG Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.74 per share. This is an increase from PPG Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. PPG Industries’s payout ratio is 42.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on PPG shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on PPG Industries from $140.00 to $138.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on PPG Industries from $126.00 to $125.00 in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 10th. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $115.00 to $116.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of PPG Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $127.00 to $134.00 in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.13.

PPG Industries Company Profile

PPG Industries is a global supplier of paints, coatings and specialty materials that serves industrial, transportation, consumer and construction markets. Founded in 1883 as the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company, PPG has evolved from its origins in glass manufacturing into a diversified coatings and materials company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company develops and manufactures a broad array of products used to protect and enhance surfaces, from consumer paints to highly engineered coatings for demanding industrial applications.

PPG’s product portfolio includes architectural and decorative paints, automotive original equipment and refinish coatings, industrial coatings for machinery and equipment, protective and marine coatings, aerospace and defense coatings, and packaging coatings and materials.