This week, six of the portfolio holdings ranked in the Top Ten.
| Ticker | Account Value |
| BDX | 3,655.41 |
| FMCB | 4,216.01 |
| HTO | 3,179.61 |
| PPG | 3,079.44 |
| QCOM | 3,676.32 |
| SCL | 3,109.30 |
There is an additional $321.00 in uninvested income available this week. The lowest amount belongs to PPG which last traded at $109.98. Therefore, I will acquire 5 shares on Monday. Below, is the purchase history and average cost calculation.
It has been nearly 9.5 months since we last added to the PPG position; it’s a good time to assess its recent performance in the context of the last 16+ years.
Observations
Stock Price
The chart above makes it clear that PPG has stalled out for better than a decade. In fact, PPG first traded at 109.98 on 2014-12-01. Some consolidation would have been warranted after the steep, multi-year run up prior to that month, but PPG is oversold. The chart below goes further back in time and we can see another flat period of price performance in excess of a decade leading up to the post-recession run.
Earnings
Magnitude/Trend
2025H1 EPS of $3.94 are down 6.6% from the 2024H1 EPS of $4.22, but 2024 was a record setting year. The chart above clearly shows that while there is heavy volatility, earnings are still in an upward trend. EPS has grown at 12.7% annually over the 15 years through 2024. However, the trend has slowed considerably with EPS growing a still respectable 3.8% annually over the last nine years.
Seasonality
The middle six months of the year are the strongest. Each of Q1 and Q4 are typically 21% of the full year’s earnings, while Q2 is 30% and Q3 is usually just a little lower at 28%.
2025H1 EPS of $3.94 is the second-best start to a calendar year ever.
PPG is trading at a trailing P/E Ratio of 14.51. Rarely has the P/E Ratio dropped below this level.
Dividends
PPG is a Dividend King with a 54-year streak; dividends should be well covered for the foreseeable future with current payout levels under 40% of EPS.
Thoughts on Investment
PPG may no longer be capable of growing at the clip it had been prior to the past decade, but it is still capable of growing. The P/E ratios north of 20 may no longer be possible or maybe better stated, sustainable, but it would not be unrealistic for PPG to trade at a multiple in the very high teens.
In the press release of the 2025Q2 earnings, management reaffirmed their full-year earnings per share guidance range of $7.75 to $8.05. The midpoint of $7.90 would set a new record.
If by some good fortune, PPG finishes the year at or above the midpoint, PPG should trade as high as $150. That’s a multiple of 19, but you can see it, can’t you (hint: red channel in price chart above)? If you remove the pandemic sell-off and the irrational exuberance that followed, it isn’t difficult to see how the price trend should have continued and where PPG really ought to be trading. Lower than $120 is wholly unjustified and as high as $150 is entirely possible.
It’s just a matter of time. And for that matter, it’s time to add more shares.