PPG Industries Unveils Powercron 160 E-Coat In North America

PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) has announced the launch of PPG Powercron 160 electrocoat (e-coat) in North America. The next-generation anionic epoxy coating offers low volatile organic compound (VOC) content and high film building.

Powercron 160 was originally formulated for unique requirements of the pipe industry and explicitly engineered for cast profiles. It uses a proprietary chemistry, which enables high film builds (more than 6 mils) over multiple substrates and pretreatment chemistries.

The e-coat assists in castings, heavy-duty equipment and automotive manufacturers, along with other metal finishers. It provides a competitive edge in product performance and environmental compliance. Additionally, it has a cure temperature of as low as 250°F to reduce energy use and related carbon emissions. It also provides higher exterior durability, excellent workability and a wide color palette.

PPG Industries offers a comprehensive range of pre-treatment, e-coat, powder and liquid products for metal finishing to manufacturers across several industries. Additionally, the company has a broad range of industrial coatings and a full spectrum of color choices. With has more than five decades of experience in e-coat, it has the proficiency to solve the industry’s toughest corrosion challenges.

PPG Industries’ shares have moved down around 3.4% in the past year compared with the roughly 16.3% decline of its industry.

PPG Industries expects cost inflation, year-over-year unfavorable foreign currency translation and lower sales volume to affect its performance in the first half of 2019. Based on these factors, the company projects first-quarter 2019 earnings per share (EPS) in the range of $1.18-$1.23.

The company envisions sales growth of 3-5% at constant currency for 2019. It also expects adjusted EPS growth of 7-10%. It also expects to deliver at least $70 million in cost savings in 2019.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

PPG Industries currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

A few better-ranked stocks in the basic materials space include Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd. (TO:KL) , Ingevity Corporation (NYSE:NGVT) and Materion Corporation (NYSE:MTRN) , all currently sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Kirkland has an expected earnings growth rate of 8.8% for 2019. The company’s shares have surged 129.9% in the past year.

Ingevity has an expected earnings growth rate of 17.9% for the current year. The company’s shares have rallied 44% in a year’s time.

Materion has an expected earnings growth rate of 12.6% for 2019. Its shares have gained 8.8% in a year’s time.

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