Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) Shares Down 0.1% – Here’s Why

Shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) dropped 0.1% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $168.83 and last traded at $169.64. Approximately 940,311 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 6,400,265 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.76.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on PG. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $164.00 price target on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Procter & Gamble from $176.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $209.00 price objective on shares of Procter & Gamble in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Procter & Gamble from $161.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, 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 report on Thursday, January 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.47.

Procter & Gamble Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $395.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.41. 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 stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $167.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.77.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $21.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.84 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 24th were given a dividend of $1.0065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $4.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is 64.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Marc S. Pritchard sold 90,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.84, for a total transaction 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 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 through this link. Also, CEO Gary A. Coombe sold 18,000 shares of Procter & Gamble stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 143,450 shares of company stock valued at $23,988,008. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Procter & Gamble

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Procter & Gamble by 933.3% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 155 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. increased its stake in shares of Procter & Gamble by 321.7% in the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. 65.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.