The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) Shares Purchased by Guidance Capital Inc.

Guidance Capital Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,497 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble comprises 0.7% of Guidance Capital Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Guidance Capital Inc.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $2,215,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 972.0% in the fourth quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 268 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Costello Asset Management INC lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 2,142.9% in the third quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mendota Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Procter & Gamble by 58.0% in the fourth quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Procter & Gamble Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE PG opened at $169.07 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $396.45 billion, a PE ratio of 26.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.45. 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 Procter & Gamble Company has a 52-week low of $153.52 and a 52-week high of $180.43. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $167.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.41.

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

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th will be given a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $164.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Procter & Gamble from $155.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Eight equities research 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.53.

Insider Activity at Procter & Gamble

In related news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 12,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.73, for a total value of $2,210,944.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,595 shares in the company, valued at $2,002,804.35. This trade represents a 52.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.84, for a total transaction of $8,604,804.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 39,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,189,463.68. The trade was a 54.48 % 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 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.