Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Stock Price Up 0.2% – Here’s Why

The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)’s stock price traded up 0.2% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $169.92 and last traded at $169.69. 1,232,952 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 6,900,625 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.43.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $174.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Barclays lifted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble from $196.00 to $189.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Procter & Gamble currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.53.

Procter & Gamble Trading Up 0.2 %

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $166.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $169.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company has a market capitalization of $398.06 billion, a PE ratio of 27.03, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.02. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.00% and a net margin of 18.35%. The firm had revenue of $21.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 EPS for the current year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 24th will be issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.17%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total value of $8,604,804.48. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,189,463.68. This represents a 54.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total transaction of $14,819,328.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 172,814 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,313,845.76. This trade represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 151,097 shares of company stock worth $25,635,076 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Joseph Group Capital Management increased its stake in Procter & Gamble by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management now owns 26,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,376,000 after purchasing an additional 2,947 shares during the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 4th quarter valued at about $15,964,000. RWA Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 271,919 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,587,000 after acquiring an additional 16,384 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 4,724,935 shares of the company’s stock worth $792,135,000 after acquiring an additional 142,574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Money Management LLC boosted its stake in Procter & Gamble by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. American Money Management LLC now owns 1,639 shares of the company’s stock valued at $275,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Company Profile

Procter & Gamble Co engages in the provision of branded consumer packaged goods. It operates through the following segments: Beauty, Grooming, Health Care, Fabric and Home Care, and Baby, Feminine and Family Care. The Beauty segment offers hair, skin, and personal care. The Grooming segment consists of shave care like female and male blades and razors, pre and post shave products, and appliances.