RPM International (NYSE:RPM) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of RPM International (NYSE:RPM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of RPM International from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of RPM International from $107.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on RPM International from $132.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $149.00 price target (up from $139.00) on shares of RPM International in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on RPM International from $125.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $129.70.

RPM International Stock Performance

Shares of RPM International stock opened at $137.84 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $129.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $118.62. RPM International has a 1-year low of $100.56 and a 1-year high of $138.26. The company has a current ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $17.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.90, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 0.99.

RPM International (NYSE:RPM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 2nd. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.09. RPM International had a return on equity of 26.82% and a net margin of 8.43%. The business had revenue of $1.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.64 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that RPM International will post 5.56 EPS for the current year.

RPM International Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.48%. This is an increase from RPM International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. RPM International’s dividend payout ratio is 42.77%.

Insider Activity at RPM International

In other news, Director Frederick R. Nance sold 594 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.47, for a total value of $80,469.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,155,017.22. This represents a 6.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Tracy D. Crandall sold 3,718 shares of RPM International stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $133.71, for a total value of $497,133.78. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 22,738 shares in the company, valued at $3,040,297.98. This trade represents a 14.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 11,083 shares of company stock valued at $1,443,549. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On RPM International

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in shares of RPM International by 33.0% in the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 16,384 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,982,000 after buying an additional 4,062 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in RPM International by 5.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,656,684 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $320,851,000 after acquiring an additional 145,070 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC boosted its stake in RPM International by 12.4% in the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 2,452 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $297,000 after acquiring an additional 271 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its position in shares of RPM International by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 51,260 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $6,202,000 after acquiring an additional 2,794 shares during the period. Finally, Dorsey Wright & Associates increased its stake in shares of RPM International by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Dorsey Wright & Associates now owns 26,194 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,169,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006 shares during the last quarter. 80.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About RPM International

RPM International Inc manufactures and sells specialty chemicals for the industrial, specialty, and consumer markets worldwide. It offers waterproofing, coating, and traditional roofing systems; sealants, air barriers, tapes, and foams; residential home weatherization systems; roofing and building maintenance services; sealing and bonding, subfloor preparation, flooring, and glazing solutions; resin flooring systems, polyurethane, MMA waterproof, epoxy floor paint and coatings, concrete repair, and protection products; fire stopping and intumescent steel coating, and manufacturing industry solutions; rolled asphalt roofing materials and chemical admixtures; concrete and masonry admixtures, concrete fibers, curing and sealing compounds, structural grouts and mortars, epoxy adhesives, injection resins, polyurethane foams, floor hardeners and toppings, joint fillers, industrial and architectural coatings, decorative color/stains/stamps, and restoration materials; insulated building cladding materials; and concrete form wall systems.