Bigelow Investment Advisors LLC Lowers Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Bigelow Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,448 shares of the company’s stock after selling 740 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble makes up approximately 0.9% of Bigelow Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Bigelow Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $1,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 55,204,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,538,327,000 after buying an additional 3,619,466 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,556,319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,599,554,000 after purchasing an additional 689,282 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,988,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,290,573,000 after purchasing an additional 1,760,214 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 18,380,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,183,522,000 after purchasing an additional 830,476 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Procter & Gamble by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,422,470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,844,442,000 after purchasing an additional 105,734 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

NYSE PG opened at $165.34 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $166.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $169.46. The Procter & Gamble Company has a twelve month low of $153.52 and a twelve month high of $180.43. The stock has a market cap of $387.70 billion, a PE ratio of 26.33, a P/E/G ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

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

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.17%.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 172,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,313,845.76. This trade represents a 34.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 47,847 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 39,977 shares in the company, valued at $7,189,463.68. This represents a 54.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 151,097 shares of company stock worth $25,635,076 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on PG shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” 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. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Procter & Gamble from $186.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.53.

About Procter & Gamble

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.