Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Down 2.6% – What’s Next?

Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) dropped 2.6% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $168.52 and last traded at $168.54. Approximately 2,767,969 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 57% from the average daily volume of 6,389,594 shares. The stock had previously closed at $173.12.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on PG shares. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Monday, February 10th. 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. 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. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Procter & Gamble from $173.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.47.

Procter & Gamble Stock Down 2.3 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $167.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.76. The firm has a market cap of $396.53 billion, a PE ratio of 26.93, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued 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 net margin of 18.35% and a return on equity of 33.00%. The business had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.84 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect 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 was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were given a dividend of $1.0065 per share. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 24th. Procter & Gamble’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Procter & Gamble

In other Procter & Gamble news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total value of $14,819,328.00. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.66, for a total value of $3,089,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 22,051 shares in the company, valued at $3,785,274.66. The trade was a 44.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008 over the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Procter & Gamble

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Swedbank AB raised its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,503,647 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,432,000 after buying an additional 56,583 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 1.0% during the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,327 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,442,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Procter & Gamble by 14.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,734,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $820,031,000 after acquiring an additional 608,168 shares in the last quarter. United Bank lifted its holdings in Procter & Gamble by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 13,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,315,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory now owns 3,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $527,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.