PPG Industries rises 3.2% after third-quarter earnings beat expectations

What happened

PPG rose 3.2% on October 27, 2026, after reporting third-quarter GAAP earnings per share of $2.25, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The company reported results for the period ended September 30, 2026, with GAAP earnings of $2.25 per share, above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.13 and up from $2.13 a year earlier, according to Zacks Investment Research.

How big was the move

The stock closed at $113.44, a rise of 3.2% on the day, and rose 4.4% over the last five sessions. Trading volume was 1.5 times its 20-day average, and the session’s move measured 2.2 times a typical daily move for this stock. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% on the day, while the Basic Materials sector median rose 1.9%, leaving PPG Industries 1.3 percentage points better than the sector median. The stock’s market value stood at $24.59 billion. Because earnings were released at this session, the results were the direct cause of the move.

The technical picture

The stock sat 5.9% above its 20-day moving average and 4.7% above its 50-day moving average, while it was 1.0% above its 200-day moving average. The 50-day average is below the 200-day average, a sign of a weak longer-term trend. The Relative Strength Index (14 days) was 64, in the neutral range between 30 and 70. The shares were 15.0% below the 52-week high. Over one month the stock rose 6.0% and over three months it rose 1.4%; over one year it rose 9.6%, which was 4.1 percentage points behind the S&P 500. Volatility was 23% annualized over 60 days, lower than 58% of its own readings over five years.

Fundamentals and valuation

For the four quarters through September 30, 2026, revenue was $16.69 billion, which grew 18.2% from a year earlier. Diluted earnings per share over that period were $7.00, and earnings per share growth from a year earlier rose 58.7%. Gross margin was 29.5% (a year earlier: 40.5%), and operating margin was 12.5% (a year earlier: 13.8%). Free-cash-flow margin was 6.3%, return on invested capital was 8.8%, and the balance sheet carried net debt of 2.1 times EBITDA. Share count over one year decreased by 1.5%.

On valuation, the stock traded at 16.2 times trailing earnings, a reading that was lower than 90% of its own readings over the past five years (five-year median: 24.0 times earnings). Price to forward earnings was 14.4 times expected earnings, and free-cash-flow yield was 4.3%. PromtFinance scores ranked PPG Industries 80 for Value (Strong), 92 for Growth (Exceptional), 42 for Quality (Weak), 71 for Momentum (Positive), 33 for Revisions (Weak), and 78 for Stability (Positive).

Earnings and analyst expectations

The last report on October 27, 2026, showed earnings per share of $2.25 against $2.12 expected, 6.1% above estimates. That marked one consecutive quarter beating estimates, and the average surprise over the last four reports was 0.9% above estimates. The typical two-day reaction after recent reports was that the stock fell 0.2%. Analysts’ consensus price target was $130.50, which was 15.0% above the closing price, based on 38 analysts with a rating. Fifty-five percent of those ratings were Buy or Strong Buy, and the consensus rating was Buy.

What to watch

• October 27, 2026: GAAP earnings per share of $2.25 reported, 6.1% above expectations, according to Zacks Investment Research
• Market value at session close: $24.59 billion
• Price to trailing earnings: 16.2 times; price to forward earnings: 14.4 times
• Net debt of 2.1 times EBITDA and free-cash-flow margin of 6.3%
• Similar sessions in the past five years: 40 sessions with a gain of at least 3.2%; twenty trading days later the median result was a gain of 1.9% and 25 of 40 were higher