Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Grows Stake in RPM International Inc. (NYSE:RPM)

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd grew its holdings in shares of RPM International Inc. (NYSE:RPM) by 21.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 54,838 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,615 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s holdings in RPM International were worth $6,736,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its stake in RPM International by 61.7% in the third quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 215 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc purchased a new position in shares of RPM International in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in RPM International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in RPM International in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in RPM International by 369.7% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 357 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of RPM International from $107.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on RPM International from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded RPM International from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $134.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Evercore ISI upgraded RPM International to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of RPM International from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, RPM International presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $132.00.

RPM International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RPM opened at $126.64 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.03, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $128.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $125.18. RPM International Inc. has a 12 month low of $103.63 and a 12 month high of $141.79.

RPM International (NYSE:RPM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 7th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.05. RPM International had a net margin of 8.89% and a return on equity of 26.76%. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that RPM International Inc. will post 5.5 EPS for the current year.

RPM International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. RPM International’s payout ratio is currently 40.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Frederick R. Nance sold 594 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.47, for a total value of $80,469.18. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 8,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,155,017.22. The trade was a 6.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

RPM International Company Profile

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.