Ballast Inc. Acquires 1,365 Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Ballast Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 9.4% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 15,893 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,365 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble comprises 0.8% of Ballast Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Ballast Inc.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $2,579,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advantage Trust Co bought a new position in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Procter & Gamble by 64.7% in the 1st quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 196 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Sundar G. Raman sold 31,924 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.95, for a total value of $5,329,711.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 19,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,179,061.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total transaction of $4,581,309.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,507 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,265.43. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Sundar G. Raman sold 31,924 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.95, for a total value of $5,329,711.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 19,042 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,179,061.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 154,544 shares of company stock valued at $25,413,051 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on PG shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $187.00 target price on the stock. Barclays upped their price target on Procter & Gamble from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $177.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.74.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PG traded up $1.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $167.05. The company had a trading volume of 1,397,606 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,483,390. The Procter & Gamble Company has a one year low of $141.45 and a one year high of $169.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $166.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $159.94. The firm has a market cap of $394.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.27, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.10. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.91% and a net margin of 18.00%. The firm had revenue of $20.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.37 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 19th will be paid a $1.0065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 19th. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.41%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 65.85%.

Procter & Gamble Company Profile

The Procter & Gamble Company provides branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. It operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. The Beauty segment offers conditioners, shampoos, styling aids, and treatments under the Head & Shoulders, Herbal Essences, Pantene, and Rejoice brands; and antiperspirants and deodorants, personal cleansing, and skin care products under the Olay, Old Spice, Safeguard, Secret, and SK-II brands.