PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $127.10 and last traded at $126.19, with a volume of 202178 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $126.51.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on PPG shares. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of PPG Industries from $127.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Evercore decreased their price target on PPG Industries from $145.00 to $112.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their target price on PPG Industries from $113.00 to $112.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their target price on PPG Industries from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.71.

PPG Industries Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $107.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $105.70. The company has a market cap of $28.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.57 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $3.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.77 billion. PPG Industries had a net margin of 9.93% and a return on equity of 22.67%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.61 EPS. PPG Industries has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.700-8.100 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPG Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 20th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.92%.

Insider Activity at PPG Industries

In related news, VP Chancey E. Hagerty sold 2,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.59, for a total transaction of $260,077.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 8,477 shares in the company, valued at $979,856.43. This trade represents a 20.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Vincent J. Morales sold 29,672 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total transaction of $3,709,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 28,439 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,554,875. This trade represents a 51.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 37,122 shares of company stock worth $4,541,078. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 306.2% during the fourth quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 7,098,767 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $727,340,000 after purchasing an additional 5,351,103 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of PPG Industries during the 2nd quarter worth about $362,412,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,159,770 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $1,593,443,000 after acquiring an additional 2,521,004 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in PPG Industries by 39.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 4,695,477 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $493,542,000 after acquiring an additional 1,326,619 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP grew its holdings in PPG Industries by 342.8% during the second quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,688,870 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $192,109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,307,468 shares during the period. 81.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About PPG Industries

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.