Westpac Banking Corp Has $3.72 Million Stock Holdings in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG)

Westpac Banking Corp lifted its stake in shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,130 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 558 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in PPG Industries were worth $3,718,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in PPG Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of PPG Industries during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in PPG Industries in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 81.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPG Industries Stock Performance

Shares of PPG Industries stock opened at $110.03 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $24.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.22. PPG Industries, Inc. has a twelve month low of $105.64 and a twelve month high of $143.98. The company’s fifty day moving average is $114.61 and its 200 day moving average is $120.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.04). PPG Industries had a net margin of 6.41% and a return on equity of 23.78%. Sell-side analysts forecast that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

PPG Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. PPG Industries’s payout ratio is 57.51%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on PPG shares. Mizuho reduced their target price on PPG Industries from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Seaport Res Ptn lowered PPG Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Argus downgraded PPG Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $128.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of PPG Industries in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $138.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Timothy M. Knavish sold 4,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.35, for a total transaction of $568,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,833 shares in the company, valued at $4,240,835.55. This represents a 11.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

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.