Morse Asset Management Inc Decreases Stock Holdings in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

Morse Asset Management Inc decreased its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 6.7% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 5,695 shares of the company’s stock after selling 412 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $924,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at $1,006,000. Highland Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 114,770 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,818,000 after acquiring an additional 2,285 shares during the period. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at $574,000. Shotwell Rutter Baer Inc bought a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter worth about $219,000. Finally, Procyon Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Procter & Gamble by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 63,055 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,240,000 after purchasing an additional 8,587 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Sundar G. Raman sold 31,924 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 19,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,179,061.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Sundar G. Raman sold 31,924 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.95, for a total transaction 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 approximately $3,179,061.90. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Shailesh Jejurikar sold 31,859 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $164.90, for a total transaction of $5,253,549.10. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 9,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,605,961.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 125,320 shares of company stock worth $20,696,223. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $171.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $177.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $170.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Argus upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Procter & Gamble from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $182.00 to $175.00 in a report on Wednesday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.29.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:PG traded up $2.21 during trading on Friday, reaching $169.11. The stock had a trading volume of 5,581,557 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,702,593. The Procter & Gamble Company has a one year low of $141.45 and a one year high of $170.92. The company has a market capitalization of $399.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.63, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.41. 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 firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $166.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $161.67.

Procter & Gamble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 19th will be issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 19th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.