First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. Boosts Stock Position in The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG)

First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. raised its position in shares of The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) by 11.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 55,917 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,653 shares during the quarter. Procter & Gamble comprises about 0.7% of First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P.’s holdings in Procter & Gamble were worth $9,073,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Advantage Trust Co purchased a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Wyrmwood Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Procter & Gamble in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 65.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on PG shares. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Procter & Gamble in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $187.00 price target for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Procter & Gamble from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Argus boosted their price target on Procter & Gamble from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Procter & Gamble from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial upgraded Procter & Gamble from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $160.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.72.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total transaction of $4,581,309.81. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,858,265.43. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Balaji Purushothaman sold 28,369 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.49, for a total value of $4,581,309.81. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 11,507 shares in the company, valued at $1,858,265.43. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Moses Victor Javier Aguilar sold 9,149 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.72, for a total value of $1,534,470.28. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,929 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,168,451.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 154,544 shares of company stock worth $25,413,051. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Procter & Gamble Trading Down 0.0 %

PG stock opened at $163.83 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The Procter & Gamble Company has a 52-week low of $141.45 and a 52-week high of $169.41. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $165.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $159.22. The firm has a market cap of $386.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.77, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.41.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $20.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $20.43 billion. Procter & Gamble had a return on equity of 33.91% and a net margin of 18.00%. Procter & Gamble’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.37 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Procter & Gamble Company will post 6.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Procter & Gamble Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th were issued a $1.0065 dividend. This represents a $4.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 18th. This is a positive change from Procter & Gamble’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Procter & Gamble’s payout ratio is presently 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.